


Keys to the Contract

by Dragonexx



Series: Keyblades and Soul Gems [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts, Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika | Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Genre: Action/Adventure, Akuma Homura, Being Homura Is Suffering, Crossover, Depression, Drama, Eventual Multicross, Everyone Has Issues, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, Genre Hopper, Keyblades (Kingdom Hearts), Mental Health Issues, Post-Rebellion Story, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Puella Magi Madoka Magica Spoilers, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Hatred, how many of these can i have?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-05
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2020-06-10 18:20:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 65,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19511854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragonexx/pseuds/Dragonexx
Summary: That which is caged yearns to be free. That which is broken yearns to be whole. For all things, there is a key. After one such key comes to Madoka, it sets her on the path to discovering the truth.It's been two years since the devil split the goddess. In that time, Madoka Kaname has been living a normal life with her friends. However, she has been constantly plagued by the feeling that something is, missing, that something is wrong. She begins to have strange dreams and encounters even stranger creatures, sending both her and Homura on a massive journey across worlds they had never even thought possible.





	1. Awakening

* * *

[Madoka was falling.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4zr9i7mBq8) And she had no idea how she had gotten into such a situation. Everything around her was pitch black, though she could see her own body perfectly, as if it was in a bright sunny day. The wind rushed around her, screaming in her ears yet, oddly, she didn’t feel afraid. Everything felt like it was right. All, part of the plan. All, in order…

She began to slow, and found herself falling through some strange world. It looked like some sort of cut and paste art project, loosely resembling a garden. Strange cotton balls with mustaches and butterflies for legs tended to the flowers. They didn’t notice her as she fell past them, through the floor, and back into the darkness.

It wasn’t long before she slowed, and fell through another world, this one made almost entirely of sweets. The smells made Madoka’s mouth water as she drifted through it, noticing more strange creatures, these some odd fusion of dog, biscuit, and macaron. Soon enough, she was gone from the sweets world, to her mild disappointment.

She was falling faster now, passing through a world comprised of floating screens with creatures like artist pose dolls with faces and wings. She felt a twinge of fear as she passed, but she was out before long.

The next few passed quickly, a small area that resembled a childs playroom drawn mostly in crayon, the next some sort of hill with a monstrance, resembling an ink painting of some sort.

Then came the concert hall. A ghostly orchestra played a haunting and sad song, and Madoka’s eyes filled with tears as she listened. Her fall slowed, and slowed, until she was only ever so slowly drifting towards the ground. This place seemed very familiar, but also wrong. Like she had failed somehow, but she didn’t know why.

As her feet gently touched the ground, it cracked like glass. The cracks spread, as light shot forth from between them. And then it began to shatter. The walls began to collapse, as a blinding light shone through. Madoka saw a brief flash of a towering creature upside down in a dress, it’s lower body made of gears. It rushed towards her, and Madoka reflexively closed her eyes.

Nothing happened. When she opened them, she was now standing somewhere completely different. On a platform that looked to be made out of stained glass lit from within, almost like a church of some kind.

However, the image it depicted was a complete shocker. It was _her!_ Madoka saw herself asleep in the stained glass. She looked so peaceful. Around her were images of her friends. Kyoko, Sayaka, Mami, Nagisa. However, in addition to them was… _Homura?_

She had never though of the girl as her friend, she was so distant to everyone, but here she was, though her image seemed to be faded and washed out compared to the others.

_So much to do, so little time…_

“What?” Madoka asked. It was a voice, but also, not a voice. Silent, yet she heard the words all the same. It felt familiar, like an old friend, though just out of the reach of memory.

_Take your time, don’t be afraid. Completion is still not yet at hand. Step forwards._

Madoka did so, and then three altars appeared at the edges of the platform. On each was something different. A sword, a rod, and a shield.

Each had some sort of symbol, three circles loosely resembling a mouse, either emblazoned upon it or worked into the design.

_Power sleeps within you. If you give it form, it will give you strength. Choose wisely._

“O-okay.” Madoka wasn’t sure she should be listening to voices in her head, but considering as she saw nothing else _anywhere_ she might as well play along.

She first stepped over to the sword. When nothing happened, she cautiously touched it, and then took it by the hilt. It was surprisingly light, and felt almost normal in her grip. She gave it a few practice swings, and found it incredibly easy to wield, the sound of it cutting through the air satisfying. The not-voice spoke then.

_The Power of the Warrior… Invincible courage… A sword of terrible destruction… Is this the power you seek?_

“I’m not… sure.” Madoka said. She liked the idea of invincible courage, but it seemed it could be blinding as well. And the terrible destruction. She didn’t like that at all.

She very carefully returned the sword to it’s pedestal, and went to the next, the one with the rod, taking it into her hands.

_The Power of the Mystic… Inner strength… A staff of wonder and ruin… Is this the power you seek?_

“Hmm…” Madoka considered the rod. It was light. Even lighter than the sword, and it tingled slightly but pleasantly in her hands. When she swung it, she heard a glimmering sound, and small motes of light trailed in it’s wake. She giggled slightly. They were pretty to look at. Inner strength, she wondered if she even had something like that. The power of wonder and ruin. It seemed familiar, but wrong… off.

Madoka returned the rod to the pedestal and headed over to inspect the shield. As she took it into her hands. The shield almost seemed to naturally raise itself, as if it wanted itself to protect her from harm. She rapped her knuckles on it’s surface, and it hummed pleasantly while also feeling incredibly solid.

_The Power of the Defender… Kindness to aid friends… A shield to repel all… Is this the power you seek?_

Madoka wanted to, but as she thought about it. She wasn’t really much help to her friends at all. She always felt like the third wheel. Kyoko and Sayaka got along fairly well. Nagisa and Mami were like sisters. Heck, Nagisa, Mami, and Kyoko were basically a family ever since they lost their own, and Sayaka had known Hitomi and Kamijou since childhood. She was always the one sitting at the side, the tag along. And to repel all? Would she be alone forever? She blanched at the thought, and returned the shield to it’s pedestal.

She stepped back into the center of the platform, looking between the three pedestals. The choice was clear.

Madoka approached the staff, and took it into her hand. She felt a connection. Inner strength. It felt necessary, like there was something lacking in her. Something that should have been there, but was missing. She’d been feeling like that for a long while. Perhaps this would help.

_The Power of the Mystic… Inner strength… A staff of wonder and ruin… Is this the power you seek?_

“Yes.” Madoka answered, more confidently than she expected of herself. Suddenly, the staff vanished in her hands in a flash of light. Had she done something wrong?

_Your path is set. Now what will you give up in exchange?_

Her vision turned to the other two pedestals. Unlike the first, this decision was fairly simple. She still wanted to aid her friends. She walked over to the sword. The voice was silent, until she remembered to pick it up again. This time, the sword felt heavier, weighing her down. It’s tip clanged to the ground, where it struck a spark against the stained glass floor. She could barely lift it.

_The Power of the Warrior… Invincible courage… A sword of terrible destruction… You give up this power?_

“Yes.” Madoka said. The sword vanished. The not-voice answered.

_You’ve chosen the power of the Mystic. You’ve given up the power of the Warrior. Is this the form you choose?_

“Yes.” Madoka answered. She suddenly stumbled. The platform she was on began to crack split apart. And she was falling again, into the darkness.

She soon enough saw a second platform similar to the first one. Again, it held sort of stained glass depiction of herself. This time however, she was dressed differently. She wore a pink frilly dress with a bubble skirt, knee high socks and red shoes. She carried some sort of bow and appeared to be aiming it at some far off target.

 _I look like some sort of magical girl, like from an anime._ Madoka thought with amusement. It was kind of ridiculous. Around the image of her were depictions of incredibly bizarre creatures. A butterfly mixed with a flower bouquet. A doll with a head like a candy wrapper. A mermaid in armor with a massive sword and surrounded by wheels. A shadowy girl praying. A lonely creature atop a horse. A ribbony girl in a dress. A spider made from human limbs in a school uniform. They were all so strange. There were also others, though the platform was cracked, damaged, the cracks obscuring them.

As she landed, she felt the platform shake a bit, and she almost lost her balance. The cracks widened, and then closed, and then widened again. As if it was being broken and fixed repeatedly. The not-voice spoke again, though it was likewise broken and difficult to understand.

_You… for-… hurry!_

A door appeared, as the platform began to shift again, Madoka struggled to keep her balance as she rushed towards the other side, barely managing to grab onto the handle as the floor beneath her suddenly dropped. She hung onto the handle with all her strength, dangling above the darkness while the pieces of the platform violently shifted around. Her breathing intensified as she struggled. She had fallen before, but now, she got the feeling that she _really_ didn’t want to fall here.

Eventually, one of the shards moved beneath her. She dropped down and quickly opened the door before it could move again.

A light shone out of the door, blocking Madoka’s vision, and forcing her to shield her face. She was momentarily blinded. When her vision returned, and she blinked the spots out of her eyes, she found herself in a familiar setting. Mami’s apartment. Had she fallen asleep?

She was sitting on the couch, like she did most days after school, where she and her friends would talk, study, joke, and generally hang out. Currently, Mami was sitting next to her, while Sayaka reclined across from them on a couch. However, instead of Kyoko or Nagisa, that Homura girl sat on the floor in the distance, seemingly gazing out the window. That was strange, what was she doing here?

She was about to ask when Mami turned to her. Her gentle smile and her heavy-lidded eyes projecting an aura of calmness that could always put her at ease. “What’s most important to you?”

“Huh?” Madoka asked. That was never something Mami had asked her.

“What’s most important to you?” Mami asked again. The same tone. The same expression.

“What kind of question is that?” Madoka said.

“What’s most important to you?” She asked again. The tone still hadn’t changed.

Maybe this was some sort of joke? Were they playing a prank on her? She was about to give some sort of silly answer, but the words stopped in her throat. She couldn’t. Somehow, Madoka got the feeling that she had to answer honestly.

She inhaled deeply. She hoped they wouldn’t laugh at her.

“You guys. My friends. My family. You’re all what’s most important to me.”

She cringed in preparation for laughter, but none came. “Are we really that important?” Instead, was the answer. She turned away, facing forwards.

“Wha-? Mami? What’s that supposed to mean?” Mami said nothing. She gave no indication that she had even heard her.

Madoka turned to Sayaka sitting across from her. “Sayaka? Why is Mami acting so weird? What’s going on?”

“What do you want most out of life?”

“Say what?”

“What do you want most out of life?” Sayaka had her trademark mischievous grin, as she repeated the question.

“Not you too?!” Madoka asked.

“What do you want most out of life?”

Again, Madoka got the same feeling. She needed to be honest. She sighed. Here goes. “I want… I want to do something meaningful with my life. Something that makes a difference, something big and important.”

As she said it out loud, she realized that it sounded somewhat selfish and arrogant. It was what she truly wanted, but she couldn’t help but feel ashamed of it, now that it was out there. Who was she to wish for such things when she wasn't really good at anything? She winced in preparation for some sort of jab, comment, or punch-line, but it never happened. Instead, Sayaka answered.

“To have meaning, huh?” She looked forwards, still grinning. She said nothing more.

What was going on? She turned to the final person in the room. Homura. She was simply sitting by the windowsill, gazing at the sunset outside. She seemed almost wistful.

“Homura?” Madoka asked.

She didn’t respond at first, simply gazing out the window, looking over Mitakahara City. Eventually, she slowly turned to Madoka and asked. “What are you most afraid of?”

Another weird question. She didn’t want to think about it, but... She closed her eyes, and spoke. “Being useless, being unwanted.”

“Is that really so scary?” Homura asked. She returned to looking at the window. The sun was just dipping blow the horizon, and the city was quickly becoming dark. The apartment was also growing darker.

“Okay? What’s going on?!” Madoka asked everyone. None of them responded. Instead, there was the familiar not-voice.

_The most important thing is those close to you._

_You want to do something meaningful._

_You fear being useless._

_Your journey begins in the dead of night. Your road won’t be easy, but a rising sun awaits your journeys end._

_The day you become whole is both far off and very near._

Everything in Mami’s apartment became darker and darker, until Madoka couldn’t see anymore. Then she felt the familiar sensation. She was falling again.

She looked down, and gasped. The next stained glass platform held a depiction of her alone. She was dressed in a flowing white dress, her hair was free and long, and she had _wings._ Her eyes were closed and she was smiling with her arms spread wide in perfect serenity. She couldn’t help but stare. It was like some sort of religious depiction like one might find in a cathedral. She looked like a goddess! There wasn’t any other word for it. She was _beautiful_.

She slowed as she descended to the platform, giving her plenty of time to observe it and take it in. Was that really her? The not-voice had talked about becoming whole, did this have something to do with it? She was nearing the platform now. She extended a foot to land on it.

And her foot passed through the platform. Madoka gave a cry of terror, as whatever had been holding her aloft let go. She fell straight through the platform like it wasn't even there and tumbled downwards. From below it, she could briefly see the other side of the depiction of herself before it violently shattered into countless shards.

Madoka screamed.

She tumbled through the darkness for however long she didn’t know. She begged and pleaded for help, but none came. The wind rushed past her ears, deafening to the point where she couldn’t even hear her own voice, while her heart pounded in her chest.

Eventually, a dull light began to shine in the distance, and Madoka realized she was headed towards another platform. Depicted on this one wasn’t anything of herself, but of Homura, wearing some strange dress, holding a black bow and with black feathered wings. While shocking, what was more shocking was that she wasn’t slowing down this time. She landed. She landed hard.

Strangely, even though she hit the ground so hard she bounced, even though she felt the impact and shock run through her, she was okay. She picked herself up and inspected her body. As she thought, she wasn’t injured in the slightest. No pain either. She then took a look at the platform. It was definitely Homura, wearing some sort of shockingly skimpy dress that made Madoka blush just to look at it. She certainly could never imagine herself wearing such things. But why was Homura here again? The image reminded her of the previous one. Homura also looked like a goddess. Her depiction was much more sinister however. Her expression was cold and severe, one hand held the bow at her side, the other forming a fist held to her chest. Suddenly, the platform began to darken.

Then, the not-voice spoke.

_The closer you get to Hope, the greater Despair becomes._

Madoka saw something shifting in the corner of her vision. She turned to see her own shadow stretching out, as if a light source was moving. Dropping.

Then it rose out of the ground. A replica of herself, cloaked in darkness. But it didn’t end there. The shadow grew, and grew, and grew. Once it was completely upright, she could see a strange mountain-like entity of shadowy tentacles in a form resembling a dress, the top of which looked vaguely human, it’s hands extended into the air as if in praise or joy. The platform began to shake. Darkness spread out from the monster threatening to engulf Madoka.

She ran. Unfortunately there wasn’t anywhere for her to go, as she realized. She barely stopped herself from falling over the edge of the platform. Sadly, that left her at the mercy of the monster, and it’s darkness soon engulfed her.

She screamed and writhed as her very skin seemed to crawl at it’s touch. It felt wrong in every sense of the world, twisted, violating, broken, foul, unclean. And she only sunk deeper and deeper.

_\--but don’t be afraid._

Soon, it covered her vision. Madoka screamed, and screamed, but nobody was coming to save her. She was helpless.

_Someday, you will bring Hope once more._

She began to loose sensation in her limbs. She couldn’t move them. She couldn’t feel them. It was creeping up her body. The numbness reached her abdomen, and then her torso. She couldn’t scream. It crept up her neck, and she couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t hear. She felt the numbness cover her head.

_The Light within you is the mightiest of all._

Madoka was as nothing.

* * *

She awoke with a jolt. She panicked for a few quick seconds, before realizing that she was now in her bedroom. In her pajamas. She breathed a sigh of relief. It had all been a dream. Right? It felt so real though.

As she looked around the room to get her bearings straight. She glanced at her clock. And nearly screamed again.

“I’m gonna be late for school!” Madoka took off, flying out of bed, showering, getting dressed and getting out the door in record time. It wouldn’t do to be late on the last day of the school year after all.

[Keys to the Contract](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ6P_M0a0KA&index=8&list=PLgM9f9lUw8i7JQnxqOPmb7vE30hwPU2FA)


	2. Looks Like My Summer Vacation is Beginning!

Now class. While you may be tempting to rush off to whatever fun adventurous things you have planned during summer break, it is important to think about your future. More specifically, your relationship future. One could simply run off, playing mindless games while on vacations. However, you are unknowingly squandering your own light in the process. The light of your youth! Right Nakazawa? You always think there will be more time, and then you suddenly run out of time and that light fades into darkness. You become more and more desperate, but your light has gone out. You keep looking, but they always want someone a bit more brighter. It’s a hopeless task. So don’t waste your light or you’ll be alone and sad and full of regrets. Nakazawa, what do you regret?”  
  
“Sitting in the front row!”  
  
“Now girls. It’s important to build a good foundation of relationships and contacts so...”  
  
Madoka had gotten used to tuning out Ms. Saotome’s rants until she got back on topic to the actual lesson. Instead, she found her attention drawn to Homura. She had appeared in several places in her dream, which Madoka remembered with explicit detail, almost as if it had actually happened.  
  
Which was strange. She hadn’t had much interaction with Homura since she had transferred. Come to think of it, had anyone? Madoka never saw her with friends or even just casually conversing with others. She was top of their class in every subject, but nobody knew anything meaningful about her. She wasn’t in any clubs and didn’t participate in any extracurricular activities. She was a mystery. The only notable thing was Sayaka’s strange and intense dislike of her.  
  
She also looked fairly sad. Her eyes had severe bags to them, like she was sleep-deprived. Madoka also realized that she had never seen her smile. _Why?_ She wondered. She also wondered why she was thinking this much about a near complete stranger.  
  
Then again she had appeared in her dream. Though admittedly, that wasn’t much to go by. But her curiosity was already piqued. Besides, it was the last day before summer break. She probably wouldn’t see her for a few months, and that’s if she even continued to stay at Mitakihara academy. With her talents, she could probably skip a grade or even multiple or even find her way into some ultra exclusive school. Might as well try.

* * *

Lunch came soon enough, and Madoka made her way to the schools cafe. Sure enough, Homura was sitting alone, staring out the window, idly picking at her food. She saw Sayaka and her other friends sitting at a different table. Madoka inhaled deeply, and exhaled. She then sat down opposite Homura, while Sayaka’s mouth dropped.  
  
Homura turned to face her and her eyes widened slightly, clearly surprised. Her expression quickly resumed it’s default dull state, as if she was just bored.  
  
“Madoka Kaname? What are you doing here?”  
  
"Well, you seemed to be sitting here alone...”  
  
“I’ve been doing so for the entire year. Why start now?” Homura asked.  
  
“Well it’s the last day of school and-”  
  
“Madoka Kaname. Why are you really here?”  
  
“I had this dream about you!” Madoka blurted out, and then winced. That… was really awful. She now probably thought she was really weird and creepy and…  
  
“Oh? Like what?” Instead of backing away, Homura leaned forwards slightly, resting her chin on the back of her hands. “What was it about?”  
  
Madoka breathed an internal sigh of relief. “Well, you see...”  
  
Madoka launched into the description of her dream. Even now, she could still remember it all in such vivid detail. She rarely remembered what happened in her dreams. At one point while describing it, Madoka swore she saw Homura’s eyes glow, but it must have been a trick of the light.  
  
“Is that it?” Homura asked, once Madoka stopped talking.  
  
“Well… that’s when I woke up.”  
  
“So it seems.”  
  
“So, what do you think it means?”  
  
“Means? Why would it mean anything?”  
  
“Well, it felt so _real_.” Madoka insisted.  
  
“Some people think dreams are messages from beyond, or visions of the future or the like. Do you believe in any of that?”  
  
“Well… not really.” Madoka said.  
  
“Others think they’re manifestations of the subconscious.” Homura suggested.  
  
“I don’t know anything about psychology though...”  
  
“Then it must have been just a dream. Realistic or not. Right, Madoka Kaname?”  
  
“I guess…”  
  
“Hmm...” Homura shrugged returned to eating.  
  
Not wanting to end on so awkward a note, Madoka tried to continue the conversation. “So, have you thought about the future?”  
  
“The future?”  
  
“Like, what are you going to do over the summer? Are you going to vacation anywhere? Do something fun?”  
  
“I haven’t really given it any thought.” Homura replied flatly. She began to stare out the window again. “Why do you ask?”  
  
“I dunno, you just seem like you don’t have much fun. I’ve never seen you smile. It might do you some good to do something you enjoy.”  
  
“mmm...” Homura continued to stare out the window.  
  
“I know it’s kinda presumptous, but… Er…” Homura didn’t appear to be paying attention. Madoka sighed. “I guess I’ll go now.”

  


* * *

After lunch, Madoka met up with her other friends sans Nagisa (because primary schoolers had different schedules) and was approached by Sayaka.  
  
“What were you doing talking to Homura?” She demanded.  
  
"I was curious. Why?”  
  
“Your okay, aren’t you?” Sayaka asked, clear concern showing on her face. She placed her hands on Madoka's shoulders. "She didn't do anything to you, did she?"  
  
"Like what?" Madoka asked.  
  
“Yeah, what’s the big deal?” Mami asked.  
  
“I’m telling you, she’s bad news!” Sayaka turned to the others.  
  
“Why? What’d she ever do to you?” Mami asked.  
  
“Nothing, I guess... It’s just that whenever I see her, my skin crawls. She creeps me out. Somethings… just... not right with her.”  
  
Madoka sighed internally. Sayaka tended to get like this at times.  
  
“Pfft, yeah right! Are ya' sure it’s not just you?” Kyoko said.  
  
“Like what?”  
  
“You probably just have a crush on her!” Kyoko teased.  
  
“I do not!” Sayaka replied.  
  
“Nah, you totally do!”  
  
“I’m telling you I don’t! There’s no way I’d be into someone like her!”  
  
“Hah, I can see it all over your face!” Kyoko pressed.  
  
“No you can’t! You’re making that up!”  
  
In an effort to keep things from getting out of hand, Mami asked. “So, Madoka, what are you doing over the summer?”  
  
Madoka brightened. “Were going to America again!”  
  
Sayaka paused from her argument with Kyoko. “Wait, you’re not moving back, are you?!”  
  
“No! Were just going on vacation! Mama has this big business conference she has to go to, so were all going to New York! Were turning it into a family trip!”  
  
“Wow! So cool!” Sayaka said. “You’ll have to tell me all about it!”  
  
“What, like send some of those shitty postcards?” Kyoko asked. “ _Wish you were here!_ But not really, because I _love_ imagining your jealousy! Then you can bore us with vacation slides when you get back!”  
  
“I’m not like that!” Madoka said. “I wish I could bring all you along with me.”  
  
“I’m not jealous… Well, a little.”  
  
“You shouldn’t be! It’ll all be okay.” Kyoko said.  
  
“Why?” Sayaka asked.  
  
“Because you’ve got Homura!” She laughed.  
  
“Not this again?!” Sayaka shouted.  
  
“It’s written all over your face again!” Kyoko said.  
  
Sayaka reached for her, but Kyoko danced out of her grip, and then laughed as she ran down the hallway, Sayaka in hot pursuit.  
  
“Oh dear...” Mami sighed. “Here we go again...”


	3. Paradise Lost and Found

_Breathe!_ Homura took a deep breath as she leaned against the railing on the school roof. Eventually, she managed to get herself under control. Her pounding heart returned to normal.

Everything was fine. She couldn’t detect any traces of the Law of Cycles. Madoka was safe, like she had been the past two years. It was just a dream. She had taken care of it. Damn it, she should have told Madoka to come find her if she had dreams like that again.

Homura sighed, and pushed herself off the fence, only to realize that it had been warped into some sort of black, splotchy, bent, mess. With a thought, it was restored to it’s normal appearance.

Everything was fine. Homura reassured herself. She could take care of things. She would make sure that Madoka stayed safe and happy. That was the burden she had sworn to bear, the great quest she had undertaken. But only now was she beginning to see the enormity of the grand task before her, like a yawning chasm over which the bridge has collapsed. Madoka had asked her about the future, and now her thoughts were spiraling. She had never been good at thinking about the future. Never good at planning beyond the immediate quest at hand.

If she could keep Madoka here, time would pass. Madoka would graduate from high school, and could possibly go to college, begin a career, find a relationship, start a family, and eventually grow old, and die.

Homura would have to watch over her for decades, keeping her safe and separate from the Law of Cycles for the rest of her life. And that was if she even _could_ grow old and die. Would she be immortal. Unaging? For all she had experienced, there was still so much Homura didn’t know. Not for the first time, Homura wanted to be closer to Madoka. To enjoy the sweet sight of her pink haired maiden. To gaze upon her beautiful smile. To marvel at her joyous laughter, like sweet nightingales singing. To sink into her embrace, like a warm fire after a cold day. To hear her comforting words, like- Homura ruthlessly crushed that line of thought. She didn’t deserve such things. Not after what she had to do. After the necessary sin she had to commit.

Instead, she could lead Madoka to the right options, the same as she had guided her back to her friends. Find her a good, safe, career. Find a fitting spouse who could keep her safe, while remaining close to her. A family to ensure she would want for nothing. A home where she would be safe and comfortable. Yes, she could do that.

Regardless, what would she be doing during this time? Though two hardly made for conclusive evidence, Madoka’s episodes were fairly far apart meaning Homura’s interventions would be far apart as well. Even later, once the proper place for her was found, once set in motion, the process would perpetuate itself. Elsewhere her familiars had the foul Wraiths under control, their infernal cruelty against mankind stymied by the endless armies of dolls. The weight of the kharmic curses fell upon the loathsome Incubators, now living up to the ideals they once preached, fueling eternity with the endless fire of their own immortal essences, their very beings crushed beneath the gravity of their sins. Entropy had been solved. The universe would continue forever and ever more. Every being in the universe could rejoice at their salvation. No longer would they fear a demise that not even God could avert, for the Devil had come with the True Knowledge, and so taken the mantle of the Almighty.

But what of herself? What fate awaited this Devil? A depraved and hedonistic orgy of hellish vices? A grim and stoic rule of her dark kingdom? Homura looked back to the stairwell. There was no desire to return to class. No desire to immerse herself in the fetid stench of captive animals jockeying in a pathetic bid for status and attention driven by hormones and insecurity while the caretakers simply averted their eyes because they just wanted to get through their day and not lament about their wasted lives.

In all truth, she wondered why she even bothered with academia at all. She had lived that cycle out more times than she cared to count, and had learned more out on her own experience that she ever learned sitting in a classroom listening to a sad old crone whine about her pathetic love life. She was absolute. All the knowledge of creation was at her fingertips, the Akashic Record at her beck and call.

But society liked it’s credentials, as misleading, arbitrary, and falsifiable as they could be. She might as well humor them, and play along. Homura snapped her fingers and called out “Usotsuki, to me!”

Near instantly, one of her servants appeared before her. A vile creature cloaked in the flesh of a woman, only barely hiding the monstrosity within. A grinning, weeping, creature that even could give even the greatest of heroes pause. The Clara Doll giggled, as she always did, her servitude a mocking and sardonic farce in but appearance, within the only thought was absolute submission to her dark mistress.

With a quick command, Usotsuki’s appearance was reshaped until she looked like a perfect replica of Homura. With that, the Liar headed back into the school, to take her place. There was no need to linger further, especially if it meant having to hear Hitomi’s obnoxious and petulant whining about Kyosuke dumping her, even though that was _months_ ago. Besides the only thing that mattered anyways was picking up her summer homework.

With that taken care of, Homura stepped forwards. The world sped past her in a blur, the sounds and sights passing too quickly to make more than the faintest of impressions. In but an instant, she was at her apartment.

Homura’s residence was bare and spartan. She was the only resident in the building, even though the structure took up an entire block. All of the furniture had already come with the place, and she hadn’t cared to alter it any. She had no possessions of her own left. No keepsakes to admire. No hobbies to while away her time. With the money she had received from disability she could have afforded to decorate the apartment, but it had never struck her interest to do so. The only things she bought were the necessities. Before she had become a magical girl, the apartment it had merely been a place to rest and recover from the days disappointments in preparation for the next. Afterwards, it had been used as a base of operations. A place to store weapons and information. A fortress and staging ground for her war against fate itself. It was never truly a home, a place where she could be herself, as much due to lack of time (ironically) as it was due to lacking a self. After her grand task had been completed, after her shining triumph over the universe itself, there was little use for such a place.

But now, her mission was complete. Her fair Madoka was where she belonged, safe and happy, unperturbed by the world of magic and despair. What next? Did she deserve a heroes rest? Was now to be her entry into the Elysian Fields, nay, to the Isles of the Blessed? Such consideration came upon her like the tide long low.

“ _I dunno, you just seem like you don’t have much fun. I’ve never seen you smile. It might do you some good to do something you enjoy.”_

The words from earlier came back to her. She shrugged and stepped into her bedroom, in front of the mirror.

Homura had never thought of herself as attractive. Small chest, no curves, pudgy face, stringy hair, scrawny, lanky, arms and legs. She had always been the odd girl out, wherever she went. No friends. Picked last for teams. Always hearing whispers and giggles behind her back. Receiving mocking texts and emails. Finding her school supplies vandalized or stolen. Enduring the teachers pitying expressions at her failures. She had long since given up on her looks or reputation. Even the outfit she had given herself upon her apotheosis had been manifested more out of the sheer thrill of the moment than any sort of desire for appearance.

But now, she pondered the matter. She had stopped keeping exact track of how many timelines she had lived through, how many campaigns she had launched, how many wars she had waged. But if she had to take a guess she would have been around her mid-to-late-twenties in subjective time. All that time fighting a ceaseless battle against time itself, the weight of weeks, months and years as nothing to this brave warrior. And now it was over. What next?

Well, it was summer break.

Homura looked over herself in the mirror. With a thought, she aged up her body to match her subjective age, making alterations as she did so. Fuller lips. Plumper chest. Curvier hips. Shapelier legs. The threads of her school uniform rearranged themselves, transforming into an elegant, strapless black dress, cut low to show off her new cleavage. Her shoes became high heeled sandals. She posed, twirled, and gave herself a brief and admittedly forced smile. Regardless, this was a form befitting of the new Goddess. They would truly look upon their savior with awe and reverence.

But why stop there? She looked around her bleak apartment, and then snapped her fingers. The building grew brighter as a fresh coat of paint was applied. The furniture transformed into much more stylish and comfortable forms, while tasteful abstract paintings decorated the walls. The lights were replaced with brighter and warmer fixtures.

She stopped and considered. It was nice but... _Too small!_ She had liberated an unworthy universe from it’s absolute demise. She was a savior. She deserved her own personal Elysium.

With another snap, the walls of the building opened up, her residence extending into the rest of the structure, transforming it to look more like a manor befitting a woman of such beauty and elegance as herself. Fancy rugs and carpets, elegant curtains, and strings of lights decorated the building. She created a media room with high-priced electronics. A dining hall with fancy silverware. A grand staircase was created leading to the upper floor, where she created a bedroom with an expansive 4 poster bed, and a balcony with a garden full of flowers.

Finished, Homura stepped outside to inspect her work. She was about to deem it good, when a car sped past her, with loud engines and loud music. And then another. And another. Then a police car in hot pursuit, sirens wailing. Ah yes, the obnoxious ravings of a city big enough to never sleep. Steeped eternally in it's own filth and decay like some rotting animal carcass. She sighed and waved her hands, and the entire structure was transported to the outskirts of the city, space folding together where it once was, and new space appearing to accommodate it at it’s destination. With this, she added grounds, including more gardens, a garage full of luxury cars, and a fountain with statues in ballet poses.

Now, without any interruptions, she looked over her work. It was good. However, she pondered. It was a nice enough manor, but far too mundane. Definitely not a residence befitting of a Devil.

[She snapped her fingers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe4B7w9-vxI&), and then she was floating far out over the ocean, no shoreline anywhere in sight. Before her was naught but the endless blue sea. Her wings emerged from her back. She spread out her hands and the world shook. The seas roiled and steamed and at her will parted all the way down to the deep deep floor. There, the seafloor cracked and split and the fiery lifeblood of the earth spilled forth. At Homura’s direction, it surged upwards as it hardened, forming into a volcanic island that rose from the sea. Dark clouds gathered above. A forest of withered and ashen trees sprung up like weeds, surrounding the edge of the island in a deathly embrace, while inwards, the volcano began to expel lava, it’s ghastly light illuminating the dark skies.

She clenched her fist, and the ground began to shake. From the side of the volcano, a massive black structure jutted out, the lava flows curling around it to form a blazing moat. The black structure twisted and flowed like water, transforming into a massive, sinister looking castle, while the storm brewing over the island crackled with lightning and thunder.

Within it’s walls, rooms formed. Troop barracks, dungeons, war rooms and observation towers all came into being. Torture chambers and death traps filled the lower levels, mixed with vaults brimming with treasure piles of gold and gems. Mysterious and arcane devices came into being in the towers. Stained glass windows dotted the walls, showing depictions of the Devil and her familiars. She then called forth said familiars, populating both the island, and the palace. Liese and Lilia prowled and stalked about the forest while Lotte soldiers patrolled the castles boundaries.

Homura landed upon a balcony and stepped into the largest room in the palace. Towering stained glass windows filled the area with eerie and unnatural multicolored light. As she walked forwards, lines of Lotte soldiers knelt as she passed, headed towards a towering black throne on the other side of the room. Behind it, a massive clockwork structure dominated, gears turning while sand flowed between them.

Homura smirked as she sat upon the throne and slouched to one side. The Lotte soldiers rose, saluted, and banged the base of their spears on the ground while the palace’s clock struck four. Lightning struck the highest tower, illuminating the island with a million volts of power and malice.

It was as they said. True, she had seen only the barest glimpse of Heaven, but indeed, it was better to rule in-

Something smacked Homura square in the face, broke apart, and splattered all over her. She stood up in a rage. “Who dares-” Some of whatever it was dripped into her mouth, and she recognized the taste of tomatoes.

_Oh, right…_

Homura’s form reverted to her teenage self, her dress transforming back into her school uniform as the tomato was cleaned off of her. When her vision cleared, she saw herself standing before her, though it shimmered and became Usotsuki the Liar from earlier. She giggled as she handed Homura the packet of summer homework, and gave a dramatic bow, as if on stage.

“Thanks.” Homura sighed. She dismissed the creature, and it skipped off to do whatever the Dolls did in their spare time. The Lotte were dismissed as well, and joined the patrols throughout the castle.

Homura walked off to the side of the room, a doorway appearing, leading to a staircase spiraling up a tower. At the top, a bedroom formed, one very plain, a recreation of her original bedroom. She sat down at the desk and got to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Homura is so interesting to write for.
> 
> ~Dragonexx


	4. Night of Fate

[It was afternoons like this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIv0QWanDV4&t=1202s) that Madoka loved. She and her friends were at their usual hangout of Mami’s apartment, drinking tea, simply chatting, joking, and relaxing. The snacks had been finished off, save for a piece of cheesecake.

That Kyoko and Nagisa were currently fighting over.

“Let go,Nagisa!” Kyoko tugged on the plate.

“No! It is cheese! It belongs to me!” Nagisa pulled back.

“You’ve already pigged out on the cake!”

“You have also had your fill! The cheesecake is mine!”

“Liar!” Kyoko pulled harder.

“You are the liar!” Nagisa countered, and continued to pull.

“Stop that you two!” Mami said.

“She started it!” Both said. “No! _She_ started it! It’s mine!”

Unfortunately, neither seemed willing to back down. Also unfortunately, Kyoko was both larger and stronger than Nagisa. This resulted in her managing to pull the plate out of her grasp. Even more unfortunately, this also resulted in Kyoko stumbling back and tripping, sending the cheesecake flying into the air.

“Oh no!” Both shouted.

Thankfully, Mami took action. She calmly held out another plate, and caught the flying slice of cake upon it, not spilling a crumb, the fork even landed with the point in the cake.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They all knew about how Kyoko hated wasting food, and Nagisa’s love of anything cheese.

“Nice catch Mami!” She said, and walked over to her, hand outstretched.

“No! Give it to me!” Nagisa jumped in front of her.

“No, it’s neither of yours.” Mami said.

“But...”

“No!” She said, in that tone of voice that said this wasn’t up for debate. Both immediately backed down.

Mami got up and walked over to the refrigerator. “I’ll have it myself later.”

“Aww...” Kyoko slumped back down to the couch.

At that moment the TV activated.

“What?” Sayaka, who had been watching the whole debacle with amusement jumped slightly.

“Oh.” Kyoko scooted over, revealing she had accidentally sat on the remote.

“ _-norant to the truth. It’s not human traffickers. It’s aliens! I’m telling you, it’s aliens! Creatures from beyond our world have come to bring about it’s end! They’re the reason! Wake up sheeple! The government is keeping the truth from us! But I know what’s really happening! And now you do to!”_

The scene showed a street where a rather obese man with greasy hair was yelling at the camera.

“ _Hey, are you cutting me off?! You can’t keep the truth hidden! The people-”_

The screen cut to a newsroom, where a pair of reporters commented. “ _And as you can see, explanations and theories vary wildly as to the cause of this rash of disappearances. Governments and law enforcement agencies the world over state that the investigation is ongoing. If anyone has information, feel free to come forth anonymously by contacting your local police station. The consensus is that any information might help._

“Ugh. If we’re going to watch TV, can it not be this?” Mami said, returning from the kitchen. “Too depressing.”

“Agreed.” Sayaka said.

“How about a movie?” Madoka suggested.

“If we can agree on what to watch.” Mami said.

* * *

As it turned out, agreeing on what movie to watch took some time, with Kyoko and Sayaka wanting to watch some action movie, while Madoka and Nagisa wanted to watch a mystery. As usual, Mami took charge and they instead ended up watching a rom-com.

It ran a bit longer than expected, and by the time it was finished, it was very dark outside, made worse by the ominous storm clouds gathering above.

“All right.” Mami said. “Be careful on the way home.”

“Oh don’t worry.” Sayaka said. “We’ll take the bus, it’s perfectly safe. No kidnappings for us! Besides if anyone tried, I’d kick their asses before they knew what was what!”

“Thank you for having us over.” Madoka said.

“Of course, it’s always lovely to see you two. Oh! We’ll be going shopping tomorrow, would you like to come?”

“I’m sure Madoka has to pack.”

“No, it’s fine. Were not leaving until July.” Madoka explained. “I’d love to come shopping with you all!”

“Great, we’ll meet at the mall around noon!”

Madoka and Sayaka waved goodbye and headed out. Above them the sky flashed with lightning prompting both girls to hurry to the bus stop.

As usual, the buses ran perfectly on schedule, arriving just as they arrived at the stop. Sayaka and Madoka boarded, and took their seats.

“So, it’s just us.” Sayaka said, leaning back in her seat.

“Yeah, it’s been kind of a while.” Madoka said. “How are things going with Hitomi and Kyosuke?”

“Hitomi’s still all torn up over the break-up.” Sayaka said.

“Really? Still?” Madoka asked. “It’s been months!”

“Yeah, but it was so sudden, y’know?” Sayaka said.

“Why did he dump her anyways?” Madoka asked.

“Dunno. I’ve tried asking, but he’s been so distant lately. He barely gives me the time of day. And to think I used to have a crush on him!”

“You don’t anymore?”

“Originally yeah, but didn’t want to let it get between Hitomi and me. But now, I’ve kinda moved on, I guess. Not like Kyosuke was that attentive when he was dating Hitomi anyways. I tried to get them back together, but he’s been blowing me off. I think somethings going on with him, but he won’t tell me. It’s frustrating! He’s been acting really weird lately.”

“Well, you have a good heart Sayaka. I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

“Hmm...” Sayaka began looking out the window. They sat in silence for a while, simply appreciating the scenery. Mitakihara was a beautiful city, even at night and during a storm.

“So, what’s up with you!” She suddenly said.

“Me?”

“Any guys or girls lusting after you?”

“What?”

“C’mon.” Sayaka placed her arm around Madoka, her trademark mischevious grin on her face. “If not that, then any guys or girls your lusting after?”

“No!” Madoka said.

“Really? With looks like those, I find that hard to believe!” She giggled as she embraced Madoka and poked her in the cheek. “Maybe I’ll take you for myself!”

“ _Sayaka! C’mon!_ ” Madoka complained as she tried to wrestle her friend off, to no avail. Other passengers on the bus were starting to stare.

“But seriously? Nobody?”

“I’ve never really given it much thought.” She said, but even as the words left her mouth, thoughts of Homura leapt unbidden into her mind.

“Aha! You’re blushing!” Sayaka said triumphantly. “So, who’s the lucky person?”

“It’s not like that Sayaka!”

“Not like that my perfect ass! You-”

There was a sudden bell, and the intercom called out their stop.

“Looks like this is where we get off.” Madoka breathed a sigh of relief. Saved by the bell.

As the two of them stepped off the bus, they could tell that the storm was building. The winds were picking up, and lightning was flashing all the faster.

“We should hurry!” Madoka said.

“Agreed.”

The two girls rushed to Sayaka’s apartment complex.

“G’night Sayaka.” Madoka said.

“Yeah, now hurry home. See you tomorrow! I’ll call you when I’m ready!”

As Sayaka entered the staircase, Madoka turned around and headed back outside. It wasn’t that long of a walk to her house, but she really should hurry. Or… should she?

The winds were starting to die down, though the sky remained dark and cloudy. As she walked, the wind dropped further and further. Madoka shivered, and then realized what she had just done. It was summer! Why was it this cold?

Then the streetlights flickered, and went out, leaving her in near total darkness. What was going on? Her heart began pounding.

_No!_ Madoka admonished herself. It was probably just a power outage from the storm. She took a deep breath. She knew the way to her home from Sayaka’s by heart. Even if she could barely see, she would be fine. One foot in front of the other, and she would be home before she knew it.

Then Madoka saw it. Something slinking around in the darkness. While she started, she quickly admonished herself again. It was probably just a cat.

A cat with glowing yellow eyes…

A lot of cats, with glowing yellow eyes.

[Those weren’t cats.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUuti-X_Ejc)

A sudden flash of lightning illuminated the creatures. They had a strange cuteness that belied the almost primal fear Madoka felt. Had she seen something like a [plush doll](https://ips.pepitastore.com/storefront/img/resized/squareenix-store-v2/e3446a745df2c5b63829e75ba9352443_1920_KR.jpg) of one in a store, she likely would have fallen in love with it. They were small, with round bodies and antennas that twitched in a manner that could be considered cute. However, they were constantly in motion, their movements jerky, like that of an insect. In fact, these creatures reminded Madoka of a very large bug like a giant ant. She had once seen a picture of an Australian Huntsman Spider. It gave her nightmares for a week, and these things were dredging up those unfortunate memories.

The creatures steadily advanced towards her, prompting Madoka to back away.

“S-stay away!” She shouted, though the creatures gave no indication they heard her.

She turned around, prepared to run, only to find more of them behind her. They had formed a circle around her.

One of them twitched and writhed, before leaping towards her, claws outstretched. She screamed and leaped to the side. She was jerked off balance and tumbled to the ground. The creature’s attack had glanced off her shoulder.

The realization flashed in Madoka’s mind. The creature had just attacked her! It was trying to kill her!

A flash of lightning illuminated the area once again, showing the shadowy creatures leaping on top of her. Madoka screamed as they crawled all over her, while her vision began to fade. She was reminded of her dream, of being swallowed up by the darkness, and all the horrid sensations that came with it.

Suddenly, a burst of light shone forth, brighter than even the lightning. At the same moment, Madoka felt something appear in her hand.

She grasped it. When the light faded, she sat up, and realized what it was she was holding.

It was a giant key. A very ornate giant key, that looked like a tree branch with pink gemstones placed into it. The teeth resembled a pink flower that was closed, though as she watched, the flower bloomed into something like a rose or a lotus. The base of the key formed a loop with the handle inside, the heart-shaped loop seemingly made of pink and white feathers. Hanging from the base was a keychain ending in a red chrysanthemum ornament.

_Keyblade… Keyblade…_

It was the not-voice from her dream! It called this thing a Keyblade? As she looked it over, a name resonated within her mind, _Crystal Clarity_.

_Behind you!_ The not-voice said.

Madoka turned in time to see one of the creatures leaping towards her. Acting on pure instinct, Madoka swung the Keyblade and struck the creature head on. The monster dispersed into wisps of smoke-like darkness that quickly faded away.

The other monsters seemed to hesitate as Madoka brandished the weapon, though it didn’t last for long. They leaped. Adrenaline surged through Madoka and she swung the Keyblade, smacking away two of them as she rose to her feet. She stepped to the side, avoiding the swipe of another and swung. It backed away, avoiding the swing, and gathered with the other creatures.

_Don't let down your guard! The shadows are without mercy!_

The monsters attacked again, relentless even in the face of their companions being destroyed and heedless of the danger posed to themselves. Madoka dodged and swung, rolling out of the way of claw swipes and headbutts, and responding with slashes with the Keyblade, gradually wearing down their numbers.

She didn't stop to think about what she was doing. The only thought on her mind was survival, not getting hurt by the strange little monsters. As she fought, a gradual rhythm came over her, recognizing telegraphs for attacks and blocking or dodging them. When she had defeated about half of them, the others started flattening, almost becoming like a literal shadow. They crawled along the ground, ignoring any attempts Madoka made to hit them as they moved about wildly.

When they reemerged, Madoka found she was surrounded again. She turned about rapidly, attempting and failing to keep all of the monsters in her field of view. It wasn't long before they attacked again. Instead of attempting to block, Madoka rushed forwards, cutting her way through two of them and placing the circle of monsters on one side of her again. They followed her, allowing her to keep them coming at her from one direction, and eliminating them as they approached.

Soon enough, her opponents were vanquished. Madoka would have given at least a little cheer of victory, but the adrenaline wore off and fatigue and realization of what had just happened caught up to her. She had been attacked. She had fought and killed her attackers. She had been attacked by monsters. She had fought and killed the attacking monsters. With a giant key! What the hell was going on?! She leaned on the key as her vision blurred. She felt dizzy and her mind was cloudy. It was difficult to think. She knew had to be somewhere, but she was having trouble remembering where that was. What was she doing before? She stumbled, as the key glowed, and began to vanish.

The last thing she saw was lightning striking somewhere in the distance before the ground rushed up to meet her.


	5. The Approaching Storm

_[The Keyblade](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2PBkqsHYh4). A truly magnificent thing. Capable of bringing about great prosperity. Supreme justice. Unlimited freedom. Or absolute chaos. To light the way, or shroud it in darkness._

_What?_

_Dear child. I’m so sorry._

_Why?_

_The Keyblade is wondrous to be sure, but in turn it binds it’s wielders fate. I’m afraid, by being chosen, you have been set upon a destined path that has led so many others to ruin._

_Wonder and ruin…_

_However, you are different. There’s something… special… something amazingly unique about your heart. I believe you will go on to do fantastic things._

_Me? You must be mistaken. I’m not really good at anything..._

_You are. More than you realize, child._

_Are you sure?_

_Indeed. Now, child, what is your name?_

_My name? It’s-_

* * *

"Madoka?"

Madoka eyes slowly opened. It was a moment before she got her wits about her, but to her surprise, she found that she was lying in her bed, in her pajamas.

She sat up, and looked around. Yes she was definitely in her own room, and those strange creatures were nowhere to be seen.

_Another dream?_ Madoka wondered to herself. She looked at her hands. She could still remember the feel of that giant key in her grip. It had felt right. So. Very. _Right_. But it was a dream. Just like that other one, realistic or not.

She then heard a shout from downstairs.

“Madoka? Are you awake?” It was her dad.

Then Madoka smelled it. Tomato and pepper omelets, bacon, and pancakes. Breakfast!

She rushed downstairs, to see her mother and Tatsuya sitting at the table while her father was placing the plates on the table. Up close, the smell was mouthwatering.

“Oh, goodmorning sweetie. I wasn’t sure if you were even awake. You slept like a log last night!” Tomohisa said.

“I did?” Madoka asked. The tiredness was starting to catch up to her, and she found herself yawning as she sat down to eat.

“Yeah, you came home and went straight to bed."

“Must have been a wild party.” Junko said with a wink. “Anybody cute you hooked up with?”

“Pahty! Pahty!” Tatsuya repeated as he put pieces of syrup drenched pancakes in his mouth.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full.” Tomohisa reprimanded.

“Not you too? Sayaka said the same thing yesterday.”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah, we really didn’t do anything.” Madoka said. “It was just Mami, Kyoko, Nagisa, Sayaka, and me. We just hung out for a bit and then watched a movie. Nothing dirty, I swear!”

“Speaking of dirty, what happened to your uniform?” Her father asked, getting up from the table.

“My uniform?”

He reached into a nearby laundry bin. Madoka nearly choked on a slice of pancakes at what she saw. After downing it with a large gulp of orange juice, she looked again at her school uniform. It was dirty and torn, with a noticeably large tear on the shoulder.

She recalled the previous night when the creatures attacked her. It wasn’t a dream! Madoka took another big drink of orange juice in an attempt to calm herself down. When she managed to keep a straight face she turned back to her father.

“Seriously! What happened?” He asked.

“Maybe the party was wilder than she’s letting on!” Junko said, a knowing grin spreading across her face. “I remember the things I got up to around your age...”

“N-no, it’s not like that, Mama!” Madoka said. “I… tripped while walking home. It was dark, and when the power went out, I couldn’t see anything for a while.”

“Well, your lucky it’s summer break now. I’ll have plenty of time to patch this up good as new!” Tomohisa said with a smile.

“Just be glad you still have summer break.” Junko said. “It’s shaping up to be a very hectic day at the office. I’ll probably be working late. So, dear, don’t worry about dinner for me, I’ll eat out tonight.”

Madoka internally sighed in relief. Though she now felt guilty about lying to her parents. But would they believe her if she told the truth? Was that _even_ the truth? Maybe she was actually going insane. That’d be just fitting, wouldn’t it? Weird dreams. Voices in her head. Hallucinating monster attacks.

Madoka mused on these thoughts as she finished breakfast and returned to her bedroom. The hallucinations seemed oddly specific, though maybe that was true of all of them? And that’s if it even was a hallucination. Gaining power from a dream to summon a giant key to fight shadow monsters? It sounded like the plot to some convoluted game or anime.

If it was real, then why? Was she some sort of chosen one? But then, why would anyone choose her of all people? She wasn’t really good at anything. She wasn’t smart only getting poor to average grades. She was horrendously uncoordinated and almost the opposite of athletic, so no good in a fight. She wasn’t especially good looking either, feeling short and rather pudgy at times. Sayaka said she was cute, but that was probably just joking. She didn't feel confident or charming either. Her friends had more or less come about as a result of her knowing Sayaka and she was always just the tag along anyways. She always faded into the background.

But then there was something special about her heart. According to the dream-voice (which she noted, felt different from the previous not-voice) that was. She placed her hand to her chest, feeling her heartbeat. Somehow, it felt like the dream-voice wasn’t referring to the organ that pumped blood throughout the body, and instead something else. What did it all mean? She still vividly remembered everything that had happened. The strange stained glass dream. The fight with the shadow monsters. The key.

The key. It was perhaps one of the strangest things she had ever seen. And yet, it had felt so… _right_. So perfect in her hand, like a natural extension of herself. Of course, that was if this all was real. Becoming the Chosen One to save the world from darkness. This could all very well be a hallucination. But were hallucinations this real? She was right in that she didn’t know anything about how this stuff worked.

And then there was Homura. She had appeared in her dreams, and she had felt compelled to talk to her about it despite the fact that the two of them hadn’t interacted since Madoka had first transferred. She then remembered that day as if it was a normal dream: hazy and vague. Odd… how could she have forgotten the details until now?

“ _It’s all right. You are what you truly are.”_

“ _Madoka Kaname. Do you treasure this world? Do you consider stability and order more important than desire?”_

“ _Then I suppose one day you will become my enemy as well.”_

“ _I will continue to wish for a world where you can be happy.”_

“ _They really do look better on you after all.”_

The way she talked, it was as if she knew her. But they had just met. And was she crying? The whole thing felt like another dream. An actual one. Barely remembered.

And speaking of dreams, she hadn’t immediately dismissed Madoka when she spoke about her dream. In fact she seemed to take a strange interest in it.

Madoka looked at her nightstand, where her favorite ribbons lay. She picked them up to inspect them closely. There didn’t appear to be anything unusal about them, just your run of the mill ribbons one could by cheaply just about anywhere. But Homura had given these to her. Maybe she knew something about what was going on. Madoka should ask her. It was worth a shot anyways. She’d visit Homura and-

_Bzzzt!_

Madoka jumped at the noise, before realizing it was her phone. She opened it to see she had gotten a text from Sayaka.

_Hey! Just reminding you that were all meeting at the mall at noon! Don’t be late!_

Oh right. There was Sayaka as well. For what it was worth, she really seemed to have it out for Homura, claiming she gave her the creeps. Madoka couldn’t see it though. If anything, Madoka felt pity when she looked at Homura. She never smiled. There were severe bags under her eyes and she always looked exhausted. She had perfect grades in everything. Maybe all that work took it’s toll on her? Or maybe she knew something other people didn’t?

And yet Sayaka had seemed legitimately concerned for her safety when she had talked to Homura. Did she also know something about this? Madoka sighed again. This was so frustrating. And that’s assuming she wasn’t just going crazy. But she supposed she should get ready for the day.

* * *

“You look like somethings eating at you, dear.” Junko said as the two of them stood by the mirror in the bathroom.

“Really?” Madoka asked.

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Um...” Madoka struggled to put things in a context that didn’t sound weird. “So… there’s this girl from school.”

“Oh!” Her mother gave a knowing and encouraging smile.

“No, it’s not like that!” Madoka hastily corrected. “I just wanted to talk to her, but Sayaka got real upset. She doesn’t like her for some reason.”

“What reason would that be?” Junko said as she combed her hair.

“I don’t know. I’m not sure if she really knows either. She says that that girl gives her the creeps though.”

“Do you feel that way about her?”

“No… I kinda feel... sad for her. She never smiles and she’s always alone.”

“Maybe you should speak with her.”

“But Sayaka says-”

“Sometimes you just have to ignore your friends.”

“Wait, what?”

“Madoka, you have a good heart. I can tell you hate to see people sad. That’s something I’m really proud of in you.”

“And I should ignore Sayaka?”

“It’s ultimately up to you. If she’s truly your friend, then Sayaka might be upset at first, but she’ll come around to understand your decision. I mean, that’s if you decide to go through with it.”

“I’m still not sure.”

“Madoka. There are times when you have to listen to others, and times where you have to trust your own judgment on what to do. You can’t always be beholden to others, or you’ll end up being easy to take advantage of. Sometimes you just have to do what your heart tells you.”

“I’m not sure _what_ it’s telling me.”

“Well if after weighing both options you still can’t decide, just flip a coin!” Junko said with a wink.

“Really?”

“Sometimes you just have to pick a choice and commit to it.”

“But what if it’s the wrong one?”

“It’s better than letting yourself get paralyzed by indecision. Life’s too short. You can’t know everything. Sometimes you just have to barrel ahead, hope for the best and accept the consequences of whatever happens. That's really the secret. Nobody has all the answers. At the very least, it’s good to make your mistakes now, while your young.”

Madoka paused as she gave her words some thought. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. And for what it’s worth, I have full confidence that whatever you choose to do will be the right one.” Junko checked her watch. “Now, I really do have to go now. It’s going to be a long day...”

* * *

It was a beautiful day, Homura observed as she walked down the street. The air was clear and warm, though a cool breeze passed through. She closed her eyes and let the refreshing gale wash over her, feeling it blow her hair out behind her.

She then turned to Madoka next to her, who appeared to be doing the same thing.

“You seem to be enjoying yourself.”

“It’s a nice day. Who wouldn’t?” Madoka said with a smile.

“I mean, they’ve all been nice lately.” Homura said.

“Not just that.” Madoka said. “It’s you!”

“Me?”

“It’s because your here with me. We haven’t been able to be together in so long.” Madoka said. “I’ve missed you.

“Um… m-me too.” Homura stammered. “S-so what do you want to do next?”

“The fountain! Race ya!” Madoka took off running, giggling all the while.

“What?!” Surprised, Homura stumbled for a few moments, allowing Madoka to run out of sight. “Madoka! Wait!”

Homura ran through the park after, eventually catching up to her at the plaza with the fountain.

“Took you long enough, slowpoke.” Madoka laughed. Homura leaned over, catching her breath. Madoka held out a hand, helping her up.

“Sorry about that.” She apologized.

“Don't worry, I'm okay.” Homura said.

“Oh wow! It’s amazing!”

When she looked up, she saw Madoka staring at the fountain. It had begun it’s sequence, mixing spouts of water with multicolored lights, creating a beautiful rainbow display. Homura had to agree.

She then felt Madoka hold her hand.

“Homura, thanks for coming out here with me today. It’s been wonderful!”

“We haven’t done anything out of the ordinary. Just lunch and shopping at the mall.”

“But it’s with you!” Madoka said, looking at Homura. “It’s always great when I’m with you! It doesn’t really matter what were doing, I just like doing it with you!”

Homura blushed. “T-thanks. I like being with you too.”

The fountain erupted water high into the air, creating a mist illuminated by rainbow lights.

“I wish every day could be like this.” Madoka said.

“It could.”

“What do you mean?”

Homura felt a grin spread across her face. “Madoka...”

“Homura, what’s going on?”

It was easy. A twist of her arm and a sweep of her leg, and Madoka was on her back.

“Homura, what are you doing!” Madoka asked with wide eyes.

“We can be together, forever. Isn’t that what you want, Madoka?” Homura’s breathing became heavy. Excited. She straddled Madoka, using her legs to pin her arms. Madoka squirmed and struggled, but to no avail. She couldn't break free.

“Homura, your scaring me!” Tears formed in her eyes.

“Don’t worry, it will all be over quick.” Homura drew a knife from her sleeve while she caressed the trembling Madoka’s cheek with her other hand. “And then we never have to leave each other...”

* * *

“ _Madoka!”_

Homura awoke with a jolt, breathing heavily. It took a moment to calm down and realize where she was. She was sitting on the throne in her castle. It didn’t take long to realize what had happened.

A dream. She had tried to sleep again.

Homura checked the time. Five minutes. It had only been five minutes since she had dozed off. She sighed. It didn’t matter. She would just have to keep doing without sleep. Wasn’t any more than what she deserved anyways.

She turned to see a large, demonic grinning face staring at her.

“What is it?” Homura asked the Clara Doll.

The doll said nothing and instead giggled, before prancing away. Homura rolled her eyes and stood up.

A single step took her from the throne room down to the jagged, rocky, beach. She looked back at her castle and island from there. Looking at it again, it really was an ugly mess. It fit.

She turned back to the ocean and sat down, an armchair appearing for her to slump in. A side table with a cold drink appeared next to her. For a while she simply sat there, observing the ocean, sipping her drink.

Eventually, she lifted her arm, the crystal on it appearing. Her Soul Gem emerged from it, and floated in front of her. She had pondered this thing many times. What was she in truth? She called herself the Devil, but that was just a title. Was she a Puella Magi again? Was she still a Witch? A Goddess? Was this truly a Soul Gem? A Grief Seed? Something else? When she wasn’t reveling in her status, she had to admit that there was so much she didn’t know about how it worked. How she had become what she was? She had absorbed the entire universe into her Labyrinth, so she could still be Homulilly. But she also had her human body and her mind. It was all a mystery.

It was then that Homura noticed something nearby. She turned to see a strange black ant-like creature. She first thought it one of her familiars, but quickly dismissed the idea. There were no natural animals on this island, so it couldn’t be that. It wasn’t a familiar, a witch, a wraith, or a nightmare. What was it?

The creature was simply staring at her, not making movements other than the twitches of it’s antennae. Out of curiosity, she made her Soul Gem float back and forth, and watched as the creatures yellow gaze followed it with rapt attention. She returned the Gem to her hand and the creature focused on her.

Then, without warning, it leaped towards her, claws outstretched. Homura acted fast, vanishing from the chair, as the creature tore into it.

She reappeared on a rock nearby, watching as the strange creature tore into the chair, ripping out the stuffing like a savage animal. It paused abruptly in it’s frenzied assault upon the upholstery and slowly turned to face Homura.

Without missing a beat it charged towards her again. She stepped aside, watching as the creature face planted into the ground. It would have been almost comical if the presence of the creature didn’t put Homura on edge. It felt unnatural. Wrong. This was clearly some sort of magical creature, though one she hadn’t seen before. She would have to learn more. With a flick of her wrist, a titanium cage formed over the shadow creature and dropped down on it. With it captive, she’d have plenty of time to study it and…

The creature suddenly flattened to the ground, becoming two-dimensional and slipping beneath the cage to freedom.

Well, that was annoying. When the creature made another leap at her, this time, Homura encased it in a diamond sphere. It clawed and pounded at it’s new prison, and even attempted to flatten again, but to no avail. It was trapped. The sphere lowered into her hands where she now examined the creature close up. It really did look like a giant bug, albeit with only four limbs. It’s yellow eyes were unblinking, and it made no expression. It’s movements were jerky and stacatto, again uncomfortably resembling a bug the size of a dog. She could detect no mouth or any other orifice to the creature, and it’s body seemed completely undifferentiated, lacking anything resembling pores, bones or veins.

Homura looked up into the air. “Reiketsu! Noroma!”

Two Clara Dolls appeared before her, accompanied by a platoon of Lotte soldiers. One of them with long blonde hair bowed. “ _Sie haben uns gerufen?”_

Homura handed the diamond sphere to Reiketsu. “Take this to the north tower so that I might examine it. Noroma, search the island for any more of these creatures.”

Both dolls nodded. Reiketsu departed, leaping towards the castle. Homura was about to join her, when she heard a strange sound, like water flowing, but distorted. As she watched, dark splotches formed across the beach, with hordes of the shadowy monsters emerging from them.

These ones were [different](https://www.khwiki.com/images/thumb/9/9d/Armored_Knight_KHX.png/200px-Armored_Knight_KHX.png), carrying oversized push daggers and wearing armor with a strange heart symbol emblazoned in the chest. The face-plates on their helms were open, revealing a face similar to the bug-like creature, but with the addition of a jagged mouth.

Immediately, the Lotte soldiers took formation, spears held forwards as they advanced. The invaders did the same, charging forwards in attack. _On her island._ These things dared to attack her _here!_

Homura snarled as she held out her hand. Her black bow formed, with a purple energy string. When she pulled on the string arrows made of dark purple flames formed, aimed at the creatures locked in combat with the Lotte soldiers.

However, before she could fire them, something impacted her hard in the back. She was sent sprawling to the ground, though she quickly rose back to her feet and dodged out of the way as a [towering creature](https://www.khwiki.com/Rock_Troll) encased in rock and wielding an axe came crashing down towards her, cracking the ground and kicking up a huge cloud of dust.

As she stood up, she found that she was grinning. The reason was immediately apparent. Screw all this complex long-term planning. This was a _fight_. It was _simple_. Something she knew intimately. Kill or be killed. Her clothes transformed into her Puella Magi uniform, and she relished the feeling. The pull and tug of the fabric. The click of the high heels. Homura ran her hands through her hair. She had missed this _so_ much.

Two of the armored creatures rushed towards her. She kicked one away, sending it smashing into a nearby boulder, destroying it. She ducked beneath the swing of the other and rose up, grabbing the creatures head. There, she squeezed, denting and cracking the armor while the creature twitched and writhed until it dispersed into a cloud of smoky darkness.

_Yes_ , she could definitely do this. Her breathing intensified as a thrill ran through her. She dismissed the bow as the giant monster emerged from the dust cloud. Clenching her fist, she gave wild laugh and charged towards the creature while the battle raged around her.


	6. Closer to Home

[Sayaka’s deliberation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhSLqN6hfAA&) over what musics to buy took far longer than expected. Madoka couldn’t keep track of all these old composers, but it was apparently serious business to her friend. Mami too, as the two of them got into an almost heated debate over which arrangement of a Mozart song was better.  
  
Finally, however the decision was over (Sayaka seemed to have won) and everyone else could be on their way.  
  
“So, what next?” Kyoko asked. “Because seriously, that took forever. And over some random guy who died hundreds of years ago.”  
  
“Mozart wasn’t some ‘random guy’! His contributions to the art and-"  
  
“Yeah, yeah, he’s your dead husbando.”  
  
“What? Why do you always go to that?”  
  
Kyoko shrugged. “I’m hungry.” Was the only response she offered.  
  
“Good, because lunch is up next. After which we should check out the clothing store. Then the video games.” Mami said. Cutting the argument before it could start and distracting Kyoko.  
  
“Finally!” Kyoko and Nagisa lit up.  
  
As Madoka watched the affair, she noticed something moving in the corner of her eye. When she turned to look at it, a dread chill went over her. She saw one of the shadow creatures from last night, disappearing down a hallway.  
  
As she watched, she felt a twitch in her hands. The feeling from last night as well. She could almost feel the Keyblade in her hands.  
  
She looked back to her friends, back at where the creature had been, and then back again.  
  
“You guys go ahead.”  
  
“Really? Why” Sayaka asked.  
  
“There’s something I want to check out. I’ll meet you at the food court in a little while.”  
  
“Sure. Don’t be long.” Mami said.  
  
“Right.” Madoka took off in the direction of the creature, following it. It didn’t appear to notice her and was instead fixated on whatever it’s objective was. It went down into an area of the mall that was currently under construction, flattening and sliding beneath the gate.  
  
Madoka paused, before taking a deep breath. This was clearly a restricted area. Should she really be doing this?  
  
“ _Sometimes you just have to barrel ahead, hope for the best, and accept the consequences of what happens.”_  
  
The words of her mother came back to her. She’d never find out what was going on if she backed down, even if she might get in trouble. She’d just have to grit her teeth and barrel forwards.  
  
_Alright! Let’s do this._  
  
As it turned out the gate was locked when she tried to open it. Madoka sighed, an honest mixture of disappointment and relief. Well, if she couldn’t get in there, then she’d just head back to where her friends were and-  
  
The sensation in Madoka’s had suddenly heightened. Then Crystal Clarity appeared in her hands. Madoka looked at the Keyblade, and then looked around the area, panicking. Her fears died down as she saw no monsters approaching. So why had the Keyblade appeared then?  
  
She looked at the Keyblade. And then back to the gate. And back to the Keyblade. And then back to the gate. An idea formed in her head. Perhaps…  
  
She pointed Crystal Clarity at the gate and she felt an energetic thrill run through her. The tip of the blade lit up forming a circle of light. From there, a beam of light shot out towards the gate, so bright Madoka had to close her eyes.  
  
She panicked for a second, had she destroyed it?! She’d definitely get in trouble for blowing something up!  
  
When the spots cleared, she breathed a sigh of relief. The gate was still there, though when she gave it a push, it opened.  
  
She looked back at Crystal Clarity, and almost slapped herself. It was a giant key. Keys unlocked things. As she watched, the Keyblade faded away in her grip.  
  
Steeling herself, Madoka walked into the blocked off area. The gate closed behind her, and instantly, the sounds of the mall became muffled, and then silent.  
  
It wasn’t long before she could [hear voices](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMrQbWqNB5Q).  
  
“Well this appears to be a bust. How much longer are we gonna have to stay here?” It was a male voice.  
  
“Cease your prattling, imbecile.” It sounded like an old woman.  
  
“But these in-between worlds always put me on edge.”  
  
Madoka slowed her movement as she got closer. She rounded a corner and quickly ducked behind a pile of construction equipment as she saw the two speakers.  
  
“It will all mean nothing once I’ve found what I’m looking for.”  
  
Curious, Madoka peeked through a gap in the pile. The two figures were a very fat man with a large beard while his partner was a very tall, thin, and pale old woman, leaning on a cane. Something about these two put her on edge. It was like there was an _aura_ about them. It made her skin crawl, reminding her of when she was engulfed in darkness in her dream.  
  
“How do you know that it’s even real? That cloaked fella could have been pulling one on us.”  
  
“The Book of Prophecies is real! Do not question me you dolt!” The old woman hissed. The fat man shied away from her, clear intimidation showing on his face. “I will have it for my own and you will keep searching until I do!”  
  
As Madoka watched, their forms seemed to waver and flicker, almost indistinct. She then felt the same sensation in her hand from moment ago. The Keyblade was reacting to them again?  
  
“Do you even have any leads on it though? It kinda feels like we're just hopping around randomly.”  
  
“Of course I have leads!”  
  
As Madoka watched, she noticed the shadowy creatures were gathering around this odd pair. Were they responsible for them. She felt her hand twitch. The Keyblade clearly was reacting to them. She had to get closer. There was definitely something off about them.  
  
She crept from her hiding spot, inching ever so closer. She needed to hear more. They definitely must know what was going on. So far, nobody had noticed her presence, and she-  
  
Madoka gave a shriek as she tripped over a bit of debris and stumbled onto her knees.  
  
“What was that?”  
  
“It would appear that we are not alone.”  
  
“Don’t tell me it’s that stupid brat and his pals again.”  
  
“We shall see. Come out if you know what’s good for you!”  
  
Madoka remained silent. Maybe they’d think it was just the wind. Or a mouse. Maybe they’d go back to whatever they were talking about. Maybe they’d _levitate the boxes she was hiding behind!_  
  
“There you are!”  
  
Madoka felt her heart pounding in her chest. That woman’s gaze was terrifying. Every instinct screamed at her to run, but for some reason her legs wouldn’t respond.  
  
The woman gestured, and Madoka was lifted off her feet and into the air. As she watched, the man and woman changed appearance. The man became more like a cartoonish humanoid cat wearing a strange jumpsuit. It was almost comical.  
  
The woman was another story. Her dress became flowing black robes while her skin took on an unnatural green-white hue. She no longer had hair, her face instead being framed in black scales, with demonic looking horns coming out of her head. Her cane became a staff tipped with a green gemstone.  
  
Madoka struggled and flailed, but she remained floating. Then, bands made of green flames encased her arms and legs like manacles, binding her. She was floated towards the woman, who grabbed her face with one of her clawed hands, forcing Madoka to look in her yellow slitted eyes. She shivered. Her hands were like ice.  
  
“ _Who are you?_ ” Her voice echoed loudly. Her breath smelled like burning.  
  
“Looks like she’s just a local.”  
  
“ _I will be the judge of that. Now answer me!_ ” The woman’s claws dug into her cheeks.  
  
“I-I’m Madoka Kaname.”  
  
“ _Who sent you?_ ” The woman asked.  
  
“S-sent me? Nobody!” Madoka stammered.  
  
“ _Fine, Madoka Kaname. Then can you tell me about a black box?”  
_  
“A what? I d-don’t know what your talking about!” The woman clearly didn’t like that, her expression darkening.  
  
“ _Then you are useless to me!”_ The woman snarled. Her grip tightened, and a chill ran all throughout Madoka’s body. It didn’t last long, as warmth soon replaced it.  
  
Crystal Clarity appeared in her hands. The flaming manacles vanished and she dropped to the ground, landing on her rear.  
  
The shadowy creatures took notice at this point, all their beady, yellow, eyes focused on her.  
  
“Aaah! Another one!” The fat cat exclaimed. “I knew she was with that brat!”  
  
“Another one?” Madoka asked as she rose to her feet, keeping the Keyblade between her and the cat. Just holding it made her feel more confident. “And who are you talking about?”  
  
“I’m sure ya’d love to know, but you’ll be a Heartless soon enough, so what’s it matter?!” The fat cat chuckled and pounded his fists together.  
  
The demon-woman instead rolled her eyes. “ _Leave her. She’s not our concern._ ”  
  
“W-what? Why Maleficent?”  
  
“ _Our concern is the box. Picking a fight with a Keyblade wielder can be… time consuming... and I have no interest in wasting my valuable time with that old man’s schemes.”  
_  
The woman gestured, and a mass of writhing shadows appeared. She walked towards it.  
  
“Hey, where are you going?! What old man?!” Madoka said. “What’s even going on?!”  
  
“ _You really are a novice aren’t you? If I had a shred of empathy in me, I might even feel sorry for what you’re likely in for.”_ The woman, apparently called Maleficent, grinned. “ _That is,[if the Heartless don’t end you first](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guyF4BKwBC0)!”_  
  
Maleficent gave a shrill laugh as she passed through the vortex, the fat cat waddling behind her. “Wait for meeee!”  
  
The laughter echoed for a time, even after the vortex dissipated. In its stead, more of the shadowy creatures (apparently called Heartless?) appeared.  
  
Madoka gripped the Keyblade, preparing herself for the onslaught as the Heartless approached. Among them were the bug like creatures from last night, though there were [new ones](https://www.khwiki.com/images/thumb/3/34/Soldier_KHX.png/200px-Soldier_KHX.png) this time. They stood on two legs, and wore odd, clam shaped helms open to reveal a face consisting of glowing yellow eyes and a jagged mouth. They bore a strange heart-shaped symbol on their chest, though most threatening of all were their razor sharp looking bright red claws.  
  
One of them immediately rushed towards her, spinning wildly. Madoka leaped out of the way and spun to the side while slashing the keyblade, destroying it. Unlike the bug creatures, when this one was destroyed, she saw a glowing pink heart-shaped object fly up and out of the dark cloud before fading away. She marveled at it, and almost got hit when another Heartless attacked her.  
  
Thankfully, she managed to strike it down, and then backed away as the entire group rushed towards her. She kept backpedaling, swiping at the Heartless as they mindlessly rushed towards her. When she almost fell over after backing into a pile of crates, she leaped on top of them, striking at the Heartless as they attempted to climb on.  
  
It wasn’t going to last. The Heartless were surrounding the pile and were now ramming against it, causing the crates to rock back and forth dangerously. She was going to fall into the mob!  
  
The crates rocked even further, and Madoka struggled to keep her balance, before it gave way entirely, and was sent stumbling back towards the edge of the pile. As she did sensation of falling into darkness from her dream crept back into her mind, her skin crawling at the mere memory of it. No! She couldn’t let that happen. She _wasn’t_ going to let that happen.  
  
Madoka felt a strange sensation surge through her, like a shot of adrenaline mixed with too much espresso and a massive sugar high. Even as the box tumbled over, Madoka kicked off the corner of it, and felt herself go flying away.  
  
Though she was moving incredibly fast, everything felt perfectly clear. She was aware of her surroundings more than she ever felt she had in her life.  
  
It was almost trivial to see the pipe getting closer. Even though it didn’t seem like it could support her weight, she grabbed onto it with ease, spinning around it, before letting go, launching herself back at the mob of heartless. As she did so, she held out her Keyblade, and felt the energetic sensation seem to move, almost “flow” through her body towards the weapon, and she saw it glow with a pink aura. As she flew over the Heartless, she lifted the blade and for a moment, everything seemed to stand still. She then came crashing to the ground, smack in the middle of the crowd. An explosion of pink light burst out wards from her point of impact.  
  
When Madoka’s vision cleared from the spots, she saw the Heartless had been scattered across the entire area, fading away into darkness, some releasing that strange object. She also saw that the pile of crates had been destroyed, reduced to splinters, and other construction equipment had been damaged or destroyed as well.  
  
_Did,_ I _do that?!_ Madoka thought, with horror. The energetic feeling had left her, but she didn’t feel any worse for wear. And she had destroyed a construction site. She stared at Crystal Clarity, trying to process what had just happened. What _was_ this thing? What was even _happening?_  
  
She felt something moving against her thigh and jumped, brandishing the Keyblade. It was then that she realized it was her phone. Her friends! They were waiting for her! The Keyblade faded away as she rushed back to the food court.

* * *

  
_Later that night…  
_  
Whatever Junko’s expectations for the day had been, the reality was even worse. As a woman it was difficult enough getting those old men to take her seriously. That so many of them were incompetent, out of touch, behind the times, and blinded by their own egos made things that much more frustrating. If she were in charge, things would be running so much more effectively. Heck, maybe she _should_ do that. Start her own business, show them all how it’s done. Junko laughed as she realized if she did that she’d have those arrogant pricks on their knees, eating out of the palm of her hand before long.  
  
But that was a thought for another day. Now, she was on the road home, and the only thing she really looked forwards to was the warmth of her husband in one arm, and a cold drink in the other.  
  
_Yeah, that’s real bliss right there…_  
  
Junko was distracted from her daydreams by movement in the corner of her eye. She turned to see a coal black face with glowing yellow eyes.  
  
Everything after that was a blur of wild motion, skidding tires, breaking glass. Junko blacked out.

* * *

  
She came to, unsure of what had happened, only to take in a deep breath, and have the memories come back with the pain. She realized that her car had been flipped over. She had crashed.  
  
Junko took a quick assessment of her body. Pains that indicated several cuts and bruises, as well as at least one broken rib.  
  
Well, she wasn’t going to let that stop her.  
  
Gritting her teeth, she shifted her position, lowering herself to the ceiling of the car, then unbuckling her seatbelt. From there, she inched her way towards the window, thankful that most of the broken glass was either elsewhere in the car or outside. She squeezed her way through the broken window, and out onto the freeway. There she rolled over onto her back to catch her breath. She was alive, and mostly intact. She reached for her phone, first to call an ambulance, then to call her family, only to realize it was still her purse which was in the car. Damn.  
  
It was then that she heard the sound of an approaching vehicle, slowing down and stopping. Well it seemed there were still Good Samaritans in the world after all. She turned to look at her rescuer, and squinted, not sure of what she was seeing. Maybe she had hit her head harder than she thought, because she could swear that car was standing up on its hind wheels.

* * *

**  
  
**

_Thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding._

_~Dragonexx_


	7. Unravelling

  
The Incubator shaped monsters were all the proof she needed that there was some sort of intelligent and sinister plot behind the attack on her island. Unfortunately, Homura had no idea how to go about finding whoever was orchestrating this.  
  
Her first suspect had been the Incubator itself, but the familiars she kept guarding it at all times had reported no change in the little pests behavior. So clearly, the Incubator shaped monster was just to mess with her.  
  
Made even worse was that any examination of her enemies only raised more questions. After the fight, she had immediately warped to the tower where the bug creature was being kept, expecting to find some answers.  
  
Instead, it made her long for more things to fight. Nothing she tried seemed to yield any form of answer, only instead confusing her further. Scans revealed that the captive creature had no organs, no veins, no skeleton, heck, no cells at all! It’s body seemed to be made of entirely the same material. Looking further revealed that it didn’t even have _atoms_. How was that even possible?  
  
Trying to understand what she was seeing only served to give her a headache, and make her long for the fight, enjoying the feeling of the kickback as she unloaded a machine gun into crowds of these creatures. Maybe she could stage a mock battle with her familiars…  
  
_After_ she had fully appraised this threat, and ensured her dear Madoka’s safety. She needed to continue working. There was much to do. However when she tried to stand, a sudden weariness came over her, mixed with some dizziness. She leaned against the desk, gripping her head. She felt so worn out. Her body ached, her joints were stiff, and her eyes stung. Her throat felt dry and her breath felt raspy. Maybe she could take a break. A nap looked so appealing right about now…  
  
_No!_  
  
She couldn’t rest. If she did… She hated thinking about what happened when she did. Best to keep moving. She forced herself away from the desk and slapped herself, jolting her to awareness. She couldn’t sleep. Not now. Not ever.  
  
But maybe instead…  
  
With a step, Homura returned to the beach. From there, she looked back at the castle, her frown deepening. What was she thinking? Building an over the top evil lair like some edgy brat. She was overcome with a sudden urge to destroy it, but stopped. The urge faded after a while.  
  
Homura turned towards the ocean, watching the waves. Eventually, the sound came to her head. Slow, elegant, and rhythmic music only she could hear. She got into position, and began to twirl and leap. She had no particular sequence in mind, instead letting the movements come to her as they did.  
  
In truth she didn’t know why she felt the urge to dance nowadays. She might have blamed it on Homulilly. She had once been the Nutcracker Witch but she had felt no urge to dance back then. Now, it felt like the only real solace she had, losing herself in the graceful movements.  
  
Eventually, however, the song came to an end, the music in her mind fading. Brief respites like these were all she was allowed, and then everything in reality came crashing back.  
  
The shadow monsters. She sighed. What were they? She recalled the heart-shaped symbol they carried. It reminded her of the symbols of Witches. They very well could be a familiar of some sort, but then where was the Witch who created them?  
  
Regardless, if there was a Witch, then things had gotten a whole lot more dangerous. Before investigating, she should check up on Madoka, make sure she was safe. And then move from there.  
  
With a step, the world flew past Homura, and she arrived outside her home, invisibly of course. When she took stock of her location, her heart sank into her stomach.  


* * *

  
When Sayaka saw the police car outside of Madoka’s house, all her worries were confirmed. She picked up her pace, almost running. Madoka had been acting off the last few days. Sayaka hadn’t said anything directly, but she could always tell when something was bothering her best friend. She had talked to Homura, _Homura_ of all people! And then at the mall, she had abruptly ran off without any real explanation, and came back looking shaken and scuffed up. The others seemingly hadn’t noticed, but even after they had been apart for years, Sayaka knew Madoka. Something was wrong with her.  
  
As she approached the gate, she could overhear the conversation.  
  
“We’ve checked with every hospital in Mitakihara. Nobody named Junko Kaname or anyone resembling her appearance has been admitted.” The officer said.  
  
“Are you sure?” A worried male voice. Must be Mr. Kaname.  
  
“I’m sorry, sir. Do you have anything we could go off of? Anything out of the ordinary? What was the last thing she said to you?”  
  
“She told me she was working late. But that’s something she does often. Are you sure there’s nothing you can do?”  
  
The police officer sighed. “Look, I’m going to be honest, we have no real leads on this case. The high-ups are scrambling day and night to find something, anything. Considering so many prominent and well known figures have gone missing, human trafficking is looking very unlikely. Were talking business leaders, politicians, celebrities, the kind of people who’s disappearances get noticed. The next logical guess would be some kind of terrorists, but there’s been no release of any demands or dissemination of any kind of ideology. Heck, at this point, maybe all the tinfoil hats are right and it really is aliens.”  
  
There was a disappointed growl. “Thank you for your time, officer.”  
  
“For what it’s worth, I’ve lost friends as well. I understand what your going through. I’ll inform you the minute we find anything.”  
  
Sayaka approached the house as the police officer left, with a small nod to her. Mr. Kaname’s eyes widened. “Sayaka? How much of that did you hear?”  
  
“Most of it.” She said.  
  
He lowered his head. “I’m sorry to have bothered you with something like this.”  
  
“It’s fine.” Sayaka replied.  
  
Mr. Kaname’s eyes looked red, like he had been crying. Behind him, Madoka didn’t look much better.  
  
“Why are you here anyways” Mr. Kaname asked.  
  
“Papa, we were going to go out shopping again today.” Madoka said.  
  
Mr. Kaname paused, and then his frown deepened. “Madoka, please don’t.”  
  
“What? Why?”  
  
“It’s… just… for the time being, I’d feel a lot better if you stayed here.”  
  
“Oh…” Madoka turned around and went back inside.  
  
She couldn’t let it end here though. “Mr. Kaname. Do you mind if I hang out here, with Madoka then?”  
  
“I don’t see why not. It’d certainly help her take her mind off of things.”  
  
“Thanks.” Sayaka said. Rushed up the stairs and to Madoka’s room.  
  
“Knock knock! You decent?” Sayaka said. “Not that I’d mind either way…  
  
“Sayaka? Is that you?” Madoka quickly opened the door. She smiled at her and then looked around the hallway. “Come in!”  
  
“Ooh, I like where this is going!” Sayaka said.  
  
Madoka’s eyes rolled, but she saw her grin slightly. Score!  
  
Sayaka followed Madoka into her room. It still looked the same as always, neat and clean with a collection of stuffed animals and pink everywhere.  
  
Madoka sat down on the bed while Sayaka took the chair.  
  
“So...” She had to get to the bottom of this. Something had been off about her for the last couple days. She wasn’t entirely sure about this, but she couldn’t back down. She took a deep breath. “Sorry about your mom.”  
  
Madoka looked to the ground. She looked sad, but there seemed to be some guilt mixed in there as well. Why though?  
  
“What happened?”  
  
“She said she was working late, which is normal for her. But, then she never came home. Papa got worried. He kept trying to call, but no answer. He called her office, but they said she already left. So he called the police. At about 4 in the morning, they found her car crashed by the side of the road, but no sign of her.” Madoka looked like she was about to cry  
  
“Oh…” This was a bad idea. “Don’t worry, I’m sure they’ll find her.”  
  
Madoka looked away, staring out the window. She was breathing heavily, and clenching and unclenching her fists, like she was trying to psyche herself up. What was going on?  
  
Madoka took a deep breath. “Sayaka, can you keep a secret? At least for a little while?”  
  
She was tempted to make a flirtatious joke, but thought better of it. This felt serious. “Yes. What is it?”  
  
Madoka closed her eyes and held out her hand, like she was concentrating. Then the strangest thing Sayaka had ever seen in her life happened. There was a flash of light, and a dance of flower petals, and suddenly, Madoka was holding a _giant key.  
_  
“What the hell?!” She couldn’t help herself, falling out of her chair.  
  
“Quiet!” Madoka hissed.  
  
“S-Sorry!” Sayaka said, eyes still wide, unable to take them off of the _giant key_ , that Madoka was now holding. When she managed to get some semblance of composure, she started questioning.  
  
“Still, what the heck is that?!”  
  
“It’s called a Keyblade. This one’s name is Crystal Clarity.” Madoka said.  
  
“A Keyblade?! This one?! Crystal Clarity?! What’s that even mean?!” Sayaka exclaimed.  
  
So Madoka launched into her story. Sayaka stared with rapt attention, barely managing to process everything she was saying. A dream with stained glass depictions of herself and her friends? Shadowy bug monsters? A cat man and a demon woman? It was like she had stepped into some sort of anime.  
  
And it all was apparently centered around that thing called a Keyblade.  
  
“Can I see it?” Sayaka asked.  
  
“Sure.” Madoka said. She handed the blade to Sayaka, who gave it a few swings. Despite the fact that it looked more like it belonged in an art gallery than on a battlefield, she had to admit it felt sturdy and well-balanced in her grip. She gave the weapon back to Madoka.  
  
“Wow… this is… a lot to take in.” Sayaka said. It did seem fairly simple when one took a step back. Madoka was some sort of chosen one. There were supernatural monsters called Heartless on the loose, apparently under the control of a pair of villains.  
  
“Well, it all seems simple. Fight the monsters, beat the bad guys, save the world!” Sayaka said, with a smile. Unfortunately, Madoka didn’t seem to share her enthusiasm. She looked even more sad.  
  
“What’s wrong? I know it seems scary, but I’ll be there for you! I’ll protect you!”  
  
“It’s not that. It’s… Mama. That cat guy said he was going to turn me into a Heartless. What if Mama was turned into a Heartless? What if one of those Heartless I fought was my mother? _What if I killed my Mother?!_ ” Madoka struggled not to sob.  
  
“Whoa.” Sayaka was at a loss for words. That was… Wait! “You fought those guys around noon right?”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
“Ms. Kaname didn’t go missing until after dark. So, there’s no way you could have fought your mom!” Sayaka deduced.  
  
Madoka pondered for a moment, then seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. “Thanks.”  
  
“But it does leave the question, what do we do now?”  
  
Madoka looked out the window again. “Homura.”  
  
Sayaka stiffened, the mere mention of her name making her uneasy. “Why?” She managed to ask.  
  
“She was in my dream. When I told her about it, she seemed curious. She must know something!” Madoka said.  
  
No. She couldn’t let her do this. “Stay away from her. I keep telling you, she’s bad news!”  
  
“Why do you have it in for her so much? Honestly?”  
  
“It’s because...” Come to think of it, why _did_ she hate Homura so much? Every time she came up, Sayaka always felt an intense loathing. It felt like Homura had done something wrong. Something awful and unforgivable. But what?  
  
“ _You, Homura Akemi, are a demon!_ ”  
  
It was her voice. Her words. Sayaka _knew_ that. She'd _always_ known that. Yet she could not explain _why_. Like something was missing. Something important.  
  
“I… don’t know.” She admitted. “I still don’t trust her.”  
  
“Maybe, but she’s the only lead we have right now. I have to see her.”  
  
Sayaka grit her teeth. She didn’t like it, but Madoka made sense.  
  
“Fine. Let’s go.”  
  
“Actually, can you please stay here?”  
  
“What? Why?”  
  
“I’m worried about Papa and Tatsuya. I need you to keep a watch on them, make sure they’re okay. Call me immediately if something happens.”  
  
Sayaka took a deep breath. Madoka made sense again. Dammit, she didn’t like this one bit. “Alright.”  
  
Madoka stood up, left the room briefly, came back, and opened the window.  
  
“What are you doing?” Sayaka asked.  
  
“Papa’s asleep downstairs, by the front door. Tatsuya’s next to him. I don’t want them to worry, so hopefully, they’ll never know I was gone.”  
  
“What?!” Sayaka gasped as she saw Madoka leap out the second story window, a pink aura surrounding her.  


* * *

After the police report was finished, Homura stepped away. There was nothing more to see. Now, one question burned on her mind.  
  
_Where was Junko Kaname?!  
_  
Homura was growing increasingly frustrated. There was no trace of the woman in Mitakihara City. She had scoured hospitals, shelters, gang hideouts, prisons, businesses, military bases, and everywhere else she could think of to find her, and came up empty. She had expanded her search to the region and then the entire country, only to conclude that Junko Kaname was not in Japan.  
  
She expanded her search across Asia, then Europe and Africa, and then to the Americas and Australia. She even went to _Antarctica_! And yet nothing. No trace of her, as if she had disappeared off the face of the earth.  
  
Her thoughts went to the strange creatures that had attacked her earlier. The Witch theory was starting to look more likely. Had Junko Kaname been pulled into a Labyrinth? But how was a Witch even possible? Madoka had destroyed them prior, and Homura’s better world, there were no Magical Girls to begin with.  
  
She supposed it was a question for later. Right now, what mattered was a course of action. Considering how long Junko Kaname had been missing, if she was trapped in a Labyrinth, she was likely to be dead. In which case, creating a duplicate of her would be necessary. Regardless, hunting down the Witch took priority.  
  
Homura returned to her manor in Mitakihara, gathering her familiars and preparing to fan out and search from there, only to pause in shock again as she looked at who was standing at the front gates.  


* * *

Madoka had never liked roller coasters, the sensation of vertigo and falling always made her nauseous. So, it was quite to her surprise that when she was using her powers to leap across the city that she felt perfectly fine. Great even. She leaped from rooftop to rooftop, bouncing off walls and even windows that should not have been able to support her weight. Yet the glass didn’t break. She grabbed onto a light pole, and swung around, launching herself into the air where defying all logic (and common sense) she landed on a power line and began grinding down it.  
  
Throughout the entire time she couldn’t help but give out cries of excitement, never mind the circumstances. Here she was, running and leaping across the city like a ninja, feeling the wind rush past her, and she couldn’t help but laugh.  
  
Soon enough, she arrived at her destination, on the outskirts of the city, and gasped at what she saw. A mansion. She had looked up the information and the records stated that she lived here. But really? A sprawling mansion?  
  
She walked up to the front gates. She didn’t see any indication of where to enter so she called out. “Homura? Are you there? I need to talk to you!”  


* * *

  
What was Madoka doing here? _What was Madoka doing here?!_ She was at her house. _She should be at her house!_  
  
_No!_ Homura took a deep breath. She would be calm about this. No need to panic. The would just talk. She should welcome her inside. It was getting close to noon. They could have lunch. That would work well.  
  
But then Homura thought back to her dining hall. The only place to eat in the house, and it was a large room. What was she thinking. A smaller room would have worked better. But what kind of smaller? Her first thoughts were of a breakfast room with a table fit for two. No, too intimate. Maybe a larger room? But not too large, or she felt like she would be showing off. Maybe instead-  


* * *

  
Surely, Mistress Good-For-Nothing was a most indecisive and cruel beast, yet, was it not the fate of the mistress and her creations to suffer? Nekura was most unfortunate to have responded to Good-For-Nothings commands to prepare a lunch, only to have the dining room spontaneously warp. As she was setting the table, the walls suddenly closed in with rapid force, launching her across the long table that splintered behind her, and ending up in a pile of broken porcelain. The room had contracted, though it didn’t last long, barely enough for Nekura to rise, before the room changed again, the pile of porcelain spring up into round rustic wooden table, launching her head through the ceiling. Then the ceiling shifted, dropping her to the ground, in a room that was now rapidly filling to the brim with Hollandaise Sauce…  


* * *

And then if she took the weather balloon and-  
  
“Hello? Is Homura here?”  
  
Oh right. Madoka was still at the front door. She had grown noticeably over the past few years, developing more of a bust and more curves, even if she hadn’t grown too much in height. So much unlike herself. She still wore those ribbons with the same cute hairstyle. It was summer break, so she wasn't in her uniform, and instead wore a white tube top and black miniskirt, with white thigh-high stockings and a pink jacket. Madoka still had that unsure demeanor about herself however, which made a knot form in Homura's stomach at the thought of it. Despite growing some, she was still so insecure. But there wasn't any time to dwell on that.  
  
Homura took a deep breath and stepped outside. She could do this. Just stay calm.  


* * *

  
The gate opened in front of Madoka, which she took as a sign that she should enter. And then Homura stepped out the front door. Madoka had to admit she had been jealous of Homura’s looks for a long time. She was so tall and slender, and her hair was so long and silky in a way that Madoka could never dream of hers being. She had long, shapely legs, and her body was lithe and graceful like a dancer.  
  
And she lived in a massive mansion like this. It made Madoka feel slightly intimidated. There were plenty of boys and girls at school who were clearly attracted to Homura, but she never really seemed to acknowledge or even notice any of them. She had perfect grades and was incredibly athletic, and she was _walking right towards her_.  
  
Madoka hoped if she was blushing, it wasn't obvious.  
  
“Madoka Kaname? Why are you here?” Her voice was neutral, she didn’t seem to be surprised to see her despite the sudden visit.  
  
Madoka thought back to everything that had happened over the past few days. The Keyblade. The Heartless. The strange dreams. The half-remembered conversation. It had all led her here. She had no doubt that Homura knew some truth that she didn’t.  
  
“Homura. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but there have been things happening. Around this city. Around me. To me. I’m still completely confused, but I think you have answers.”  
  
Homura stiffened at Madoka’s words. Had she offended her? Was she too direct?  
  
“What... kind of things?” Homura finally answered.  
  
“It starts with the dream, and then-” Before Madoka could say anything else, she heard a sound, like some sort of distorted water flow, and Heartless appeared all around them.


	8. Tapana

They were here! Madoka was in danger! Homura stepped forwards, ready to fight. “Madoka get back-”  
  
“Heartless! Homura, get back! I’ll protect you!”  
  
“-I’ll prote- _WHAT?!_ ”  
  
It was like ice had filled her entire body. She saw a key-like weapon form in Madoka’s hands, resembling the bow she once wielded. She watched as Madoka stepped in front of her, brandishing the strange key shaped sword. Homura stood frozen and transfixed as she watched Madoka rush forwards and fight the monsters.  
  
_No! No! No! No!_ This couldn’t be happening. Madoka was safe. She wasn’t a goddess anymore! She wasn’t a Puella Magi anymore! She was just a girl! Why was this happening?!  
  
She barely noticed as the creatures were slain, Madoka’s sword making short work of them as she leaped about the battlefield. She then turned to Homura, who was still struggling to process everything she was seeing.  
  
“Homura! Are you okay?! The Heartless didn’t hurt you did they?”  
  
She felt numb. She had failed. Madoka was still fighting.  
  
“Homura? Earth to Homura!”  
  
What? Madoka was speaking to her. She should say something.  
  
“Madoka Kaname... Are you okay?!” The words sounded muffled, distant. As if someone else was saying them.  
  
“Yeah. I’m fine.” She said. “It’s not my first run in with the Heartless. But I still need answers.”  
  
_Not my first run in..._  
  
Homura transformed her clothes, donning her Puella Magi uniform.  
  
“Whoa!”  
  
She needed time to think. This wasn't right. She needed to gather answers and find out what had gone wrong. What was wrong with Madoka.  
  
“Please, return home.” Homura said.  
  
“What? But-”  
  
Homura gestured, and the world warped. Madoka was transported to the front of her house.  
  
Homura walked back into the house. Inside, she saw several of the Lotte soldiers, sweeping up some broken glass. Apparently, one of the “Heartless” had appeared inside the house and caused some damage before being destroyed.  
  
She watched the dolls cleaning up. Soldiers with spears slung over their backs were sweeping up. It was a stupid looking sight. And the sound of all that broken glass being swept was grating to her ears. One of the Lotte turned and began to salute her. They looked stupid. Stupid. So stupid… _She was so stupid!_  
  
She grabbed it by the neck and hurled it out the window. Before any others could react, she grabbed another and tore it in half.  
  
Homura screamed.  
  
_I’m so stupid. How did I ever think this could work!_  
  
She punched another, and then smashed another into the ground.  
  
_How could I have not noticed!_  
  
She grabbed a vase and smashed it into a painting, destroying both.  
  
_So fucking stupid! Can’t anything fucking work! No! No it can’t!_  
  
She lifted a cabinet, and smashed it through the wall, ripping open pipes which gushed out water.  
  
_Stupid! So fucking stupid!_  
  
Homura collapsed to the ground, screaming, sobbing, and gripping her head as glowing hands erupted from her body, tearing through the manor. Furniture was smashed, appliances were hurled about, and walls punched through, while her familiars fled in panic. A car was lifted and hurled out of the garage and through most of the house, where the engine caught fire. The lights simply exploded.  
  
Eventually the storm abated, leaving the manor in ruins. The hands faded away and Homura stood up, wiping away her tears. She couldn’t just stand around here. She needed to investigate. Something was wrong with Madoka, and she needed to fix it. The key she was wielding resembled the bow she had once wielded. That could mean only one thing.  
  
“ _ **INCUBATOR!** ” _Homura shouted at the top of her lungs. Her outfit changed, transforming into the dress she wore when she became the Devil. Black wings spread from her back as her eyes blazed with purple fire.  
  
Homura took off straight up, bursting through the roof of the manor. She then took off through the air, flying at super sonic speeds, a blazing purple comet in the sky. The ocean steamed and bubbled in her wake as she flew towards her island, howling in rage.  
  
She didn’t pause when she reached it, instead smashing through the side of the volcano, straight into the dungeons of her castle, only stopping once she reached one of the cells.  
  
Outside the cell was a full compliment of Lotte, led by a Clara. Inside the cell a tiny white creature was trapped in a cage too small for it. Its fur was dirty, mangy, and wild, and its eyes were bulging and shaking. Its breathing was labored and raspy.  
  
_{H-ho… mu… ra.}_ Kyubey’s telepathic voice, almost always calm, was now weak and fearful.  
  
“What have you done?!” Homura demanded. The cage broke apart and she lifted Kyubey into the air by its neck.  
  
_{I’m not sure what you mean?}_ Kyubey replied.  
  
“Don’t play dumb! Madoka! What have you done to Madoka?!”  
  
_{I h-have had no contact with Madoka Kaname. Why do you ask?}_  
  
“She’s a Puella Magi again! Fighting creatures she calls Heartless!”  
  
_{Is she? T-that’s interesting. I have n-n-not, nor h-has any other Incubator, made a new Contract with her. As to these Heartless…}_  
  
“Do you know anything about them?!” Homura shouted.  
  
_{Knowledge of these Heartless exists.}_  
  
“What do you know?! Tell me!”  
  
Kyubey instead twitched. It’s eyes rolled back and forth.  
  
_{It’s d-difficult to th-think in this state.}_  
  
Homura paused, and considered it’s words. She then hurled the creature to the ground. A pistol formed in her hands, and she opened fire. Earlier, whenever she attacked the Incubator, it reacted at most with annoyance when it wasn’t trying to use it’s injuries to score pity points with Madoka. Now, it writhed on the ground, screaming in pain, powerless.  
  
_Oh hell yes!_ A massive smile spread across Homura’s face. She unloaded the entire clip into the little cretin, the prison echoing with the sound of gunshots and laughter. After a moments thought, she reloaded the gun and emptied another clip into Kyubey while it was helpless to fight back. _That’s what you get!_  
  
“No more of your word games! Give me a straight answer! Do you know anything about the Heartless that I do not!”  
  
Kyubey was silent and limp.  
  
“For how advanced and rational they claim to be, the Incubators are startlingly ignorant in so many matters. They do not possess the knowledge you seek.” A voice behind her said.  
  
“I want to hear it _say_ it.” Homura snarled. She held out her hand, and the ground beneath Kyubey began to crack. It was levitated into the air as lava surged forwards, the ground melting away. Homura levitated Kyubey over the lava, roasting it. The creature screamed in pure horror as it’s fur began to blacken and burn.  
  
“I know your still in there! Answer the question! Do you know anything about the Heartless that I do not! _Yes or no!_ ”  
  
_{No! No! No!}_ Kyubey screamed.  
  
“There. Was that so hard?” Homura said. She returned the cell to it’s normal state, dropping Kyubey, not even bothering to recreate the cage. It stumbled over to a corner and curled up, shuddering while staring at Homura fearfully. Small victories.  
  
It was then that she realized that someone had spoken behind her. She turned, and then gasped in shock.  
  
“ _Kyosuke?!”_

* * *

  
Before she could even finish her sentence, Madoka found herself standing outside her house. She didn’t believe her eyes at first, but quickly had no choice other than to accept that she had somehow been _teleported_.

And Homura had sent her away. But that transformation. Her clothes had changed into some weird getup, that kind of reminded her of the outfit she had seen herself wear in her dream.  
  
Homura definitely had answers. She wanted Madoka to wait. But she got the feeling that if she did, she’d lose her chance of finding anything out.  
  
She looked up at the sky. It was completely obscured by thick dark clouds, and lightning flashed within them.  
  
She couldn’t stop here. She had to go back. She took off running, leaping onto the nearby rooftops, making her way across the city. Madoka wouldn’t be ignored. She’d get her answers.  
  
Unfortunately, her trip was interrupted by the sudden ringing of her phone. When she saw it was Sayaka, she immediately answered it.  
  
“Sayaka? Is that you? What’s wrong?”  
  
“ _Madoka! You have to get back her ASAP! It’s-”_ There was a crackling sound, and then silence.  
  
“Sayaka?!” The call had ended. Madoka noticed a shadow pass over her, and looked up to see a horde of bat shaped heartless flying through the air. Headed in the direction of…  
  
“Home!” Madoka said. “No! No!”  
  
[She took off running,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8NdanccjBw) leaping across the buildings, returning to her house, hoping she wouldn’t find what she expected. Unfortunately, her hopes were not met. Heartless crowded around her home, windows had been broken and the front door was kicked down. Smoke trailed out from inside the building.  
  
Madoka didn’t waste any time, she leaped over the mass of heartless outside and came crashing down on them, channeling the energy she used to leap around into an explosion of energy upon impacting the ground, destroying all of them. She rushed towards the front door, only to narrowly dodge a sudden _fireball_. Madoka looked up to see some sort of armless, bell shaped, Heartless with a yellow hat. As it flew close to her, it glowed, and a fireball streaked out from it. Madoka dodged the projectile, which struck the bushes, setting them on fire. She leaped up into the air, smacking the Heartless to the ground, destroying it.  
  
She then rushed into the front door, cutting down the Heartless blocking her path.  
  
“Papa?! Tatsuya?!” Madoka called. Smoke was gradually filling the building. She heard a crashing sound and a scream from the kitchen. _No!_ It couldn’t be what she thought that was.  
  
She rushed into the room to have all her worse fears confirmed. She froze as she saw her father was lying on the ground, blood pooling around him. He struggled to pick himself up. Standing over him was a Heartless that resembled the little bug-like ones, but human sized and covered in glowing blue veins.  
  
“ _Madoka… Run…”_ Tomihisa croaked out as he looked weakly at her. Then his eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed. From his chest, a glowing heart like object emerged. Madoka could only stare, transfixed. It was a beautiful, thing, though that awe soon turned to horror as the glowing heart was engulfed in darkness. That darkness then expanded, growing arms and legs and antennae until it transformed into one of the bug Heartless.  
  
Tomohisa’s body faded away as the bug creature turned it’s eyes towards Madoka. Like all the others, its expression was unreadable. It slowly crawled towards Madoka, keeping its gaze locked on her.  
  
“Papa?” She asked, looking into it’s yellow eyes. Without warning, the Heartless leaped towards Madoka. She frantically backed away, and instead stumbled back over a chair, while the Heartless leaped up on top of her. It swiped it’s claws, drawing a series of cuts along her cheek. She pushed the monster off of her and stood up, backing away from the Heartless while keeping her Keyblade pointed at it.  
  
“S-stay away!” She said, her voice cracking. The blade shook as the Heartless steadily crawled towards her again. If that was her father, she couldn’t kill it. But what should she do then? Him or her? Did it really come down to that?  
  
She was shook out of it by the sound of crying in the next room. Cries she recognized instantly. “ _Tatsuya!_ ”  
  
Madoka tore herself away from the Heartless that might be her father and rushed over into the living room. There she could see Tatsuya cowering beneath a table while Heartless tried to reach under it to get at him.  
  
“ _Stay away from him!_ ” She shouted, and charged forwards, cutting them apart with Crystal Clarity.  
  
“Madoka?” Tatsuya sobbed.  
  
“Yes it’s me!” She said. “It’s your big sis!”  
  
Tatsuya crawled out from under the table, and immediately rushed over to Madoka, sobbing. “Madoka! I’m scared!”  
  
“Don’t worry.” She said, embracing him. “I’ll keep you safe.”  
  
As she said those words, she noticed a flash of movement in the corner of her eye. It was too late to react however, and she and Tatsuya were sent flying. She clung to him, shielding her little brother from the impact. He now lay on top of her, still sobbing as she saw the Humanoid Heartless stalk towards her.  
  
She brandished her Keyblade with one hand while she clung to Tatsuya with the other. She needed to fight it, but she couldn’t leave Tatsuya alone. Then the Heartless jerked, and stumbled, before collapsing to the ground. It’s body dispersed into wisps of darkness that when they faded reveled _Sayaka?!_ And she was wielding a cutlass!  
  
“Sayaka?!” Madoka exclaimed. "W-where did you get that?!"  
  
“No time to talk! We have to go now!” Sayaka shouted.  
  
“Y-yes!” Madoka said. She stood up, carrying Tatsuya, and running towards exit. The fire was growing, and the house was filling with smoke.  
  
The three of them made it out of the building and on to the front lawn.  
  
“Where’s your dad?” Sayaka asked.  
  
“He… didn’t make it.” Madoka said, the full realization of what had happened bearing down on her.  
  
“What do you mean he didn’t make it?”  
  
"He was-"  
  
All of a sudden, something struck the ground near by, and an explosion rocked the area. Madoka was lifted off her feet and hurled away, rolling on the ground, while Tatsuya was flung from her grip.  
  
Her vision was clouded, and her ears were ringing. Everything hurt. Eventually, her vision began to clear, and she saw Tatsuya lying on the ground. He was in danger. She had to get him to safety. She-  
  
A red javelin impaled her little brother. He made no sound, not a wince of pain, not seeming to comprehend what had just happened to him.  
  
Madoka could only watch on blankly as her brothers body went limp. Holding the weapon was a gigantic creature, resembling an incredibly emaciated one-armed man, bare chested, with it’s lower body clad in a robe. A heart shaped hole was in the middle of it’s chest. It floated it the air, cross legged like some sort of monk. Strangest of all was it’s skull like head, floating above it’s body and split in two. In between the halves was the stylized heart-shaped emblem that other Heartless sometimes bore.  
  
The gigantic Heartless lifted Tatsuya’ into the air, where he began to fade away. As with her father, a glowing heart emerged from his body, and was shrouded in darkness and transformed into a Heartless. That was bad, wasn’t it? The bug disappeared, along with Tatsuya’s body.  
  
Suddenly, a blue haired girl rushed over to her, frantically looking back between Madoka and the giant Heartless.  
  
“Madoka! Get up!”  
  
Was that Sayaka? She was here? If she was, then…  
  
“TATSUYA!” Madoka shot up as she fully processed what had happened. Her little brother was gone. She gave a raw scream and leaped towards the gigantic Heartless.  
  
“GIVE HIM BACK! GIVE HIM BACK!” She screamed as she wildly slashed at the Heartless. Tears streaked down her face, stinging as they ran over the cuts on her cheek, but she didn’t care. It took _Tatsuya_.  
  
The Heartless, blocked her swings with the javelin and easily batted her away. She crashed back to the ground, and quickly leaped to her feet. She was about to rush it again, when she was instead grabbed from behind.  
  
She turned to see a strange grinning girl dressed in elegant clothing pulling her away.  
  
“LET GO OF ME! _”_ Madoka shouted.  
  
“ _Komm mit, wenn du leben willst!”_  
  
What the hell, was that _German_?! Whatever, Madoka didn’t care, that thing had taken her little brother!  
  
“TATSUYA! GIVE HIM BACK!” She struggled against the grip of the strange girl, trying to get at the giant Heartless, who stood there, blankly watching, while she was dragged away.  
  
“Let her go!” Sayaka ran towards the new girl as well and shoved her away. She stumbled back into the street, and was about to rush forwards again, when a car slammed into her head on.  
  
There was the sound of gunshots and the gigantic heartless reeled back as bursts of light exploded on it’s body, sending it crashing back into Madoka’s house, shattering the glass windows and tearing out a large chunk of the structure.  
  
Madoka stared Mami Tomoe stepped out of the passengers seat, holding some sort of silver musket. Out of the drivers seat, Kyoko Sakura emerged, wielding a spear. Out of the back seat came Nagisa Momoe. “Over here!” She shouted. "Hurry!"  
  
Madoka looked to her friends, and then back to the Heartless which was rising from where it had been knocked over, the javelin it was wielding now wreathed in flames. It had taken Tatsuya.  
  
“NO!” She screamed again. “GIVE TATSUYA BACK! GIVE PAPA BACK!”  
  
She prepared to rush forwards, only to feel hands grab her. Sayaka, Mami, and Nagisa were holding her back.  
  
“Get her in the car!” Kyoko shouted. “Hurry!” The smaller heartless were gathering again. She rushed towards them, slashing with her spear.  
  
“NO! PAPA! TATSUYA!” Madoka screamed. She tried to fight back, but the three of them overpowered her, and managed to wrestle her into the back seat.  
  
Once she was in, Mami jumped back into the front passenger seat and called back to Kyoko, who ran back and dove into the drivers seat. The Heartless rushed in pursuit, though she quickly righted herself, slammed the door, and floored the pedal. The tires screeched and the car sped away from the burning house while Madoka screamed in horror and grief.

* * *

_If I had to choose a name, I’d call that boss heartless_[Tapana](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naraka_\(Buddhism\)). It fits, on multiple levels.  
  
As to the German, I don't speak the language, so the best I can do is google translate.  
  
Again, thanks to [The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!  
~Dragonexx


	9. A World of Silence

[Mitakihara was burning.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4IADI0AHto) The world was in chaos. Thick clouds of smoke poured into the dark cloudy sky, as buildings crumbled. Siriens wailed while vehicles veered off the streets and crashed. Screams echoed across the world as Heartless descended en masse. Screams of horror. Screams of grief. Screams begging for mercy. Screams for help. Screams that were too often abruptly silenced. Here and there, attempts at defense and counterattack were mounted, though they were woefully unprepared for such an adversary. An adversary that emerged from the shadows, ignoring all defenses and bulwarks, who struck without warning or heed to their own well being. Who came upon them in such overwhelming numbers and so relentlessly that none stood a chance. Disorganized and scattered, one by one in rapid succession, they fell. Above all was the giant Heartless, a silent observer of the pandemonium below.  
  


* * *

Once the initial shock of him being there wore off, questions began to rage in her mind. How was Kyosuke even here? This island was out of phase with the rest of the world. Someone without magical ability shouldn’t even be able see it, let alone interact with it.

But that meant that Kyosuke knew of magic in some form. But how? There weren’t any Puer Magi as far as she knew. But he knew of the Incubators. Somehow. Was this some new scheme? Some bid for freedom? If it was, Kyubey was in for a world of pain. Hell, perhaps that was how she could occupy her time.

“Now, I know you probably have plenty of questions and-”

Homura gestured, and Kyosuke was suddenly pinned against the wall, the stone flowing upwards in tentacles to bind him in place. In a burst of violet light, her bow formed in her hands, arrows of violet fire aimed directly at his head.

“How did you get here? How do you know about the Incubators?”

“A-all very interesting questions, but the wrong questions. We really are pressed for time at the moment.” Kyosuke said, an awkward smile on his face, as if trying and failing to put Homura at ease.

“What do you mean?”

“The Heartless.”

“You know about them?!”

“Indeed.”

“What are they? Where do they come from? Why are they here?”

“If you’d let me down, I’d be happy to tell you.” Kyosuke said, indicating his bonds.

“The rat already tried that line.”

“Feel free to keep you weapon trained on me if it helps. It’s not like I can pose a threat to you anyways.” He said.

Homura paused, and then both of them were transported to the balcony outside the throne room, overlooking the entire island. She kept her bow aimed at him, while a platoon of Lotte formed a circle around them, spears at the ready.

“The Heartless. What are they?”

“That’s a very broad question, with a lot of potential answers, of which I doubt I can entirely explain given the short time frame and your state of agitation. However, the answer that will help you most in this situation is that Heartless the darkness that lurks within the hearts of men, manifested and given form to act upon the world.

“Darkness?”

“The negative aspects of a being. Greed, lust, apathy, hatred, bigotry, cruelty, misery. Though I doubt you are unfamiliar with the concept.”

“Like Witches and Wraiths...” Homura said, lowering her bow. Were these some new manifestation?

“Precisely. However, Witches are the result of the Heart of a Magical Girl breaking under grief and despair and Wraiths are simple creatures of destruction and chaos. The Heartless are far, far, worse. When a being is utterly consumed by their darkness, they may transform a Heartless, but it doesn’t stop there. The Heartless seek to spread darkness as much as they can, and thus act to corrupt the Hearts of others. They will attack people and steal their hearts, infecting them with darkness, thus creating more of themselves. Endlessly. It’s not a stretch to assume that near every being in existence could become a Heartless.”

The bow dropped to the ground, and vanished, as realization set upon her. These creatures were worse than anything she had faced before, and Madoka was on the front lines of the battle!

“Madoka is in danger!”

“Indeed. Now here’s what needs to be done...”

* * *

It was a blessing that the roads they took were mostly clear, meaning Kyoko was free to floor it, putting as much distance as she could between the gigantic Heartless and them.

Sayaka looked over at Madoka. Her hysteria hadn't lasted long, and now she was uncomfortably silent, staring at the floor where Crystal Clarity lay, jostling around as the car went over bumps. She was no longer crying, she just looked... empty. Sayaka took her hand. She honestly wasn't sure what to do or say. She was still barely processing what had happened herself. Instead, she turned to the others.

“Thanks, guys. I thought we were goners there!”

“Well if you want to pay me back, you can start by telling me what the hell is going on?!” Kyoko said, gesturing to the sheer chaos outside. Buildings were burning when they weren’t collapsed entirely. Signs were torn over, and powerlines were down, sparking electricity. The whole place looked like a tornado had blown through.

However, there were no people. It was eerily silent.

"Like what? What do you want to know?" Sayaka asked.

"Why don't you start at the beginning." Mami said.

"Well, Madoka says it started when she had this really trippy dream..." Sayaka launched into an explanation as best as she could, going over the dream, the Heartless, the strange figures at the mall, Madoka leaving to get information out of Homura, and the attack on Madoka's house.

"They turn people into more of them?" Kyoko asked.

“Like a zombie apocalypse!” Nagisa exclaimed.

“Now that you mention it...” Mami said uneasily.

As they said these things, it hit Sayaka like a hammer. Her family was probably gone as well, suffering the same fate as Madoka's. Her shoulders slumped. _No!_ She looked over at Madoka, still numb from what she had just seen. She had to be strong. For her sake. Best to think of something else.

“Now I want to know something. Where did you get those weapons?” Sayaka asked, indicating the spear and musket. “How long have you had those?”

“Since about an hour ago.” Kyoko said, and then swore as she had to swerve the car to narrowly avoid a collapsed streetlight.

“We just woke up, and these weapons were in our hands. It wasn’t long after that when Heartless attacked our apartment. After fighting them off, we got a call from Sayaka and came over. And now here we are.” Mami explained. "The same goes for you to, Sayaka, right?"

“Yeah. Well, crap. I thought you guys might have answers.” Sayaka said and then something else hit her. “Oh, that reminds me! Homura! Did you get anything from her, Madoka?"

"Not really." Madoka said softly.

"What do you mean?"

"I went to her place. Heartless attacked. I fought them. Then I tried to ask questions. She teleported me back home instead."

"She _teleported_ you?"

"I tried to run back to her, but that was when... when..." Madoka paused, her eyes widening.

"So that's all we know." Sayaka quickly interjected, while squeezing Madoka's hand.

"So what do we do next?" Nagisa asked.

“Yeah.” Kyoko said. “Do we have a destination, or am I just driving aimlessly?”

“Were nearing the edge of the city.” Mami said. “There should be a gas station not to far away. Let’s recuperate there, and figure things out.”

Sure enough, a gas station came into view. Kyoko pulled up to the street nearby, and stopped the car. Everyone exited.

* * *

  
“Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I didn’t get breakfast this morning, so I’m gonna grab whatever I can.” Kyoko said, heading towards the attached store.

“What do you mean grab?” Mami said. “And we still need to figure out a plan.”

Kyoko snorted. “Food comes first. _Then_ we can talk about other things.”

“Yes, I'm also hungry.” Nagisa added.

“See there? Looks like your getting outvoted.” She turned to Sayaka and Madoka. “What do you think?”

Madoka had sat down at a bench, and was simply staring at the ground. Sayaka sat down next to her. “We’ll uh… we’ll keep watch outside.”

“So, two yays, one nay, and two abstains. Hooray for democracy!”

Mami sighed, but followed Kyoko into the store. The door opened, and a jingle played, but there was nobody inside. The obnoxious music kept playing over the speakers though.

“Hello?” Mami called. There was no answer. Nobody else was here.

Kyoko shrugged, and grabbed a bag of chips, ripped it open, and began eating.

“Hey! You can’t just-”

“Consider it 7-11’s generous and well-publicized donation to the save-the-world fund.” Kyoko said. As she ate, she looked at a wall where television screens were hanging. Those that didn’t depict error signals showed empty streets, stadiums, and news rooms. “Not that it seems there’s much of a fuckin’ world left.”

Mami looked at the screens. She was silent for a few moments. “We’ll… we’ll fix this.”

“Huh… how do ya’ figure that?” Kyoko asked. She finished the last of the chips, poured the crumbs into her mouth and chucked the bag to the ground, before grabbing a pack of jerky.

“We just… will.”

“Oh. Of course! It so simple! How could I have never thought of that? We just _will._ ”

“We have these powers and weapons now! Don’t you think that means something? We can make a difference!”

“Make a difference. Pfft! People say that all the time. Think they’ve found the solution to the worlds problems. Seen it go down myself. ‘We’re going to change the world!’.” She mocked after swallowing a large mouthful of jerkey. “You go all out and yet the worlds still a shithole in the end. Wars, slavery, corruption, abuse. Fat lot of ‘difference’. Nobody really gives a shit. Honestly, people like that should just give up the delusion and leave normal people alone. If God’s really there, then He’s probably laughin’ at this whole shitshow. Trying to help people is a fool’s game.”

Mami huffed. Though Kyoko didn’t look back, she could guess she was crossing her arms. “And yet you’re still here.”

“Hey, beats dying to a bunch of stupid-lookin’ demon zombies. Y’know what I think we should do? Grab all the food and supplies we can fit in the car, get the hell out of the city, maybe find somewhere in the countryside we can hole up in. Go all doomsday survivor. Probably still die horribly in the end but we’ll definitely live longer than running off on some misguided suicide mission.” Kyoko tossed the empty bag of jerky to the ground, and opened a pack of gummi worms. “Save the world. What garbage.”

“I meant with Nagisa and me.”

Kyoko barely held herself back from snarling. Of _course_ she had to go there. “Hey, nobody made you go all charity case us. I certainly didn’t ask. Yet if some naive rich kid's gonna offer me food and a warm bed, hell, why not take advantage of a bleeding heart.”

She could almost hear Mami stiffening behind her. “You don’t mean that.”

“Believe whatever you wanna believe.” She shrugged as she tossed the bag of gummi worms on the ground, and opened the refrigerator, grabbing herself a soda.

She heard footsteps behind her. Mami had walked off. Whatever. She downed the soda and opened a taiyaki.

After finishing the taiyaki (and two others) she chucked the wrappers and headed back outside briefly. Nagisa was currently gorging herself on some cheese cubes, while Mami had found some first aid supplies and was patching up the cuts on Madoka’s cheek, as well as her other injuries. Madoka for her part barely reacted. She was simply staring down at the ground, summoning and dismissing her Keyblade over and over.

As Kyoko approached, Nagisa glared at her, and sidled closer to Mami. She had probably overheard their conversation.

Kyoko sighed and headed back into the store. Maybe she had gone overboard. Inside she grabbed a few wrapped sandwiches and headed back outside, walking over towards Madoka. She held out one of them to her.

“Here.”

“I’m not really hungry...” Madoka said.

“You’re going to have to eat something.” Sayaka said.

“I’m not really hungry...” Madoka repeated.

“You need to keep your strength up.” Sayaka said.

"I'm not..."

"Please, _for me_."

Madoka said nothing. Eventually however, she dismissed the Keyblade and took the sandwich, eating almost robotically

Kyoko handed another sandwich to Mami and Sayaka, before heading back into the store herself.

“Where are you going again?”

“Takin' a piss. Be back in a few.”

* * *

  
"So..." Sayaka asked. "What _are_ we gonna do?"

"Did you overhear our conversation?" Mami asked.

"Parts of it." Sayaka said. "What a jerk!'

"She's just stressed out." Mami said.

"That still doesn't excuse it." Sayaka stood up. "I'm going to tell her-"

"Please don't." Mami said. "She's stressed. We all are."

"You're just going to accept that she talked to you like that? You're just going to let that slide?!"

"Everything's falling apart!" Mami exclaimed. "I don't want us to fall apart as well!"

Sayaka sighed. "Fine, but where do we go from here then?"

"What about Maleficent?" Nagisa said. "She and that cat guy appear to be behind this. We should seek them out."

"Do we even know where to look?" Sayaka asked.

There was a sudden sound like gusting wind. Everyone jumped, before they realized that Madoka had finished the sandwich was back to summoning and dismissing her Keyblade again.

"Let's just wait until Kyoko gets back, and then we can figure things out." Mami said.

* * *

Kyoko looked at herself in the dirty, cracked, mirror. What the _hell_ had her life turned into? Family dead. Living on the streets. Then moving in with her old friend Mami. And then a fucking demon apocalypse. And all at the ripe old age of 17.

Kyoko liked to think of herself as a survivor. When her dad went apeshit, she got out of there as quick as possible. She had survived on the streets, dodging pimps and thugs, and quickly figured out how the world worked while she broke into the best hotels and swiped food from the best stores without getting caught.

Now however, the world was being consumed by monsters brought in by a talking cat and a demon woman. There were giant monk demons that shot fire. And she had a goddamn spear. What the fuck?

Kyoko held out her hand, and the spear appeared. She examined the weapon. Despite having only appeared to her about an hour ago, it felt natural in her grip. She took a fighting stance, and found that it came easy to her, like she had done it a million times before. What, was this an “I know kung-fu” moment? Were spear techniques just downloaded into her brain? Was it the same for the others?

"Save the world, huh?"

Then, she noticed something, crawling out from beneath one of the stalls. It looked like a black furred weasel, with a stupid looking face, and long ears with odd rings floating around them. It had beady yellow eyes, but what drew Kyoko’s attention the most was the heart-shaped emblem on it’s back.

“Heartless!” Kyoko immediately thrust the spear, impaling and destroying it, only to see more began to appear. She couldn’t waste time here!

Kyoko leaped over them and kicked open the door, rushing outside to where the others were sitting.

“What’s going on?!” Sayaka asked.

“Heartless!” She shouted.

As she said those words, more of the monsters appeared. Everyone leaped to the feet, weapons at the ready, before they realized what form the Heartless had taken this time. There were creatures shaped like [red bells](https://www.khwiki.com/Vermilion_Samba), one that was a bag holding [burning coals](https://www.khwiki.com/Bag_O%27_Coal), but worst of all was a round creature with [fire erupting](https://www.khwiki.com/Flame_Core) from the tip of it’s body. In a gas station.

The Heartless wasted no time, releasing fire everywhere.

“What do we do?” Nagisa asked.

“RUN!” Mami shouted.

The girls dashed as fast as they could away from the gas station, knowing full well what could happen next. They weren’t disappointed. There was a deafening burst of noise followed by a wave of heat.

* * *

  
Once her ears stopped ringing, Sayaka heard Mami’s voice. “Everyone okay?”

“Yep, everything still attached.” Sayaka said, pushing herself to her feet.

"Yes." Madoka said.

"I'm fine." Kyoko said.

They heard nothing from Nagisa.

"Nagisa!" Sayaka whipped around, only to breath a sigh of relief to see her sitting not to far from them. She was staring into the fire.

"Are you okay?"

"There is someone in there!" Nagisa said, pointing to the massive conflagration.

"What?!" Sure enough, Sayaka could see the silhouette of somebody moving through the blaze, steadily walking towards them. At first, she though that they had been wrong and there actually _had_ been somebody in the station, though they were quickly proven wrong when the she saw that the figure was way taller than any human being.

[Out of the fire](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIQDEnPWidc) emerged a towering heartless clad head to toe in armor. Emblazoned on each of the shoulder pauldrons was the heart-shaped insignia. In place of hands, it had two swords that looked to be made of [molten lava](https://www.khwiki.com/Heat_Saber), striking sparks as they were dragged against the ground. As it approached them, more armored heartless appeared, these wielding oversized push daggers, while the fiery Heartless emerged from the blaze behind them.

"Get ready to fight!" Sayaka said, as the Heartless stalked towards them, burning footprints in it's wake melting the asphalt.

* * *

_Again, thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!_

 _~Dragonexx_


	10. Shadow Storm

The house was in ruins. A huge chunk of the front had been torn out, and fires raged everywhere. The bushes on the lawn had almost burnt to ashes, and there was a large crater, as if some sort of explosion had gone off.  
  
Homura collapsed to her knees. Was she too late. Was Madoka gone?  
  
“Was this where you sent her?” Kyosuke asked.  
  
“Y-yes.” Homura leaned over and punched the ground. It was weak, no more than a tap. She didn’t have the strength. She had _failed. Again!_  
  
Maybe she could go back in time. After Madoka’ wish she hadn’t had her time powers. Then, later she had them, but it was in truth, a dream. After fixing the world, she hadn’t tried to use them, but now it looked like there was no option.  
  
“I don’t think she’s dead, if that’s what you’re wondering. But that-”  
  
“How do you know?!” Homura rounded on Kyosuke, grabbing his shoulders.  
  
“I don’t speak German, but...” He indicated to something lying in the road. One of her Clara dolls. She looked like a mess, and had tire tracks over the front of her.  
  
“Yakimochi!” Homura rushed over to her. With a snap of her fingers, her injuries were healed, and she sat up, dusting off her dress. “What happened here?!’  
  
“ _Oh, Herrin. Ich habe versucht, Ihre süße Madoka zu retten, nur um von den grausamsten und unerwartetsten Komplikationen gebremst zu werden. Oh! Es war schrecklich, als es auf mich niederprallte und-”_  
  
“Get to the point!”  
  
“ _Madokas Freunde ließen mich mit einem Auto hinüberfahren, als ich versuchte, sie zu retten, und nahmen dann höchstwahrscheinlich mit ihr ab. Ich weiß nicht wo sie jetzt sind._ ”  
  
“So she’s alive.” Homura breathed a sigh of relief though it was instantly replaced with more worry. She needed to find where she had run off to, and quick.  


* * *

[Even from a distance](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIQDEnPWidc), Sayaka could feel the heat that the Heartless was giving off. The fire at the gas station seemed to pale in comparison to it, the air shimmering around it’s blades. As it stepped over a piece of metal debris, the metal near instantly began to glow red.  
  
“What do we do?” Nagisa asked.  
  
“We kick it’s ass!” Kyoko said. She formed her spear, and charged towards the Heartless, joined by Madoka.  
  
“Wait!” Mami said.  
  
“Do we even have plan?!” Sayaka asked.  
  
“Help them! Keep those smaller Heartless off them. Nagisa, you and me take out the flying ones!”  
  
“Got it!” Sayaka held out her hand, and her cutlass appeared. The weapon just felt right in her hands, and the proper stances came naturally, like she was a veteran warrior.  
  
Sayaka rushed forwards, watching as Madoka and Kyoko attacked the large Heartless. Unlike the others, it seemed to have some combat skill, as it blocked each of their swings and pushed forwards, sending them stumbling back.  
  
As they did, the smaller knights attempted to swing at Madoka. Sayaka leaped forwards slashed at it, cutting it in half, causing it to disperse into wisps of darkness, before slicing down two more.  
  
“Watch your backs!” She said.  
  
She then noticed out of the corner of her eyes something glowing, and threw herself to the ground as a one of the bell Heartless shot a fireball at her.  
  
She say Kyoko leap over her, attempting to hit it with he spear, at the same time that Nagisa fired a stream of bubbles. The Heartless was destroyed, and Kyoko was blown back.  
  
“What the hell are you doing?!” She shouted.  
  
“You jumped in front of my shot!” Nagisa shouted back.  
  
A sudden surge of heat alerted Sayaka to the movements of the large Heartless, and along with Madoka, she blocked the downward swing of it’s blades. Up close, the heat was scorching.  
  
The monster was strong, pinning both of them down, unable to do anything more than futilely attempt to push back against it’s weight. A weight that was getting harder and harder to even keep up. The molten blade drew closer and closer, and the heat became sweltering. Sayaka started to avert her gaze as she felt part of her face begin to sear.  
  
There was sound of a gunshot and a flash of light against the Heartless’ helm, Mami’s shot knocking it off balance. When the weight was lifted, a pink aura surrounded Madoka and she shot up like a rocket, striking the creature again in the head, sending it sprawling onto it’s back. Afterwards, she came crashing down, though the Heartless rolled to the side, and flipped up, it’s trail shooting out fire, which Madoka narrowly dodged.  
  
As Madoka reengaged with the large Heartless, Sayaka turned to block the swing of one of the knights, and countered with a swing, destroying it, only to have to duck as something only barely missed colliding with her.  
  
Somehow, Kyoko’s spear had extended, becoming a whip like weapon that destroyed an entire row of knights.  
  
“You almost hit me!” Sayaka said.  
  
“Well don’t get in my way then!” Kyoko shouted. Her weapon contracted into it’s spear form, and she charged towards the giant Heartless.  
  
Sayaka wanted to rebutt, but there were bad guys here right now. She needed to focus on that. Instead, she growled, but followed Kyoko.  
  
The bladed Heartless was keeping up with all of Madoka’s swings, and countering with some of it’s own. When Madoka swung at it’s legs, it cartwheeled away, pushing of it’s own swords. It then swung, unleashing a wave of fire, that the three of them had to dodge out of the way of.  
  
The heat was unbelievable, and Sayaka watched as it hit a building across the street, lighting it on fire. The fire spread quickly, and from that blaze emerged more fiery Heartless, forcing Mami and Nagisa to focus their projectiles in that direction.  
  
More knight heartless came charging in, attempting to surround the three of them, only for Madoka to charge forwards again. She cut a path through the knights, moving past them, towards the giant Heartless, leaving Sayaka and Kyoko behind to fight the rest. Kyoko leaped over the crowd of knights to join Madoka in her attack on the leader, leaving Sayaka surrounded.  
  
Great.  
  
Sayaka barely managed to avoid getting impaled as multiple Heartless rushed her at once. Ducking beneath their thrusts, she swung upwards, cutting down two of them, and then turning to strike at two more.  
  
Off to the side, she saw Madoka and Kyoko attempting to land strikes on the leader. However the creature blocked or dodged each attack, countering with fiery strikes that forced them back on the defensive. Kyoko’s spear thrusts were turned aside, even able to avoid it’s whip form. When Madoka attempted to attack with her Keyblade, she was likewise countered with a wave of flame that nearly engulfed her. Madoka quickly leaped out of the blaze, though Sayaka could see a few scorch marks on her.  
  
A flash to her side caused her to refocus on her own battle, but too late. The knight cut into her leg, causing Sayaka to stumble, and then suffer a cut on her arm, and then across her side. She swung back, destroying the last of the knights, and then turned back to Madoka to see that the giant Heartless was missing.  
  
“Where?”  
  
“Look out!” Kyoko shouted.  
  
A shadow above was her only warning as the Heartless came diving down towards her. Sayaka attempted to leap out of the way, but it was too late. The Heartless hit the ground and everything became roaring flames.  


* * *

  
“ _SAYAKA!_ ”  
  
Madoka watched as Sayaka screamed in pain when the fiery explosion engulfed her. She was sent flying back, trailing smoke and fire before landing hard on the asphalt, unmoving.  
  
_No! No! Not you too!_ A dread chill ran through Madoka, everything else fading from her awareness. Sayaka had been her friend since she was old enough to remember. Always there for her. Even when she was in America, they'd still regularly kept in contact. She rushed over to Sayaka, and her heart sank as she saw the state she was in, massive burns all over her body. Her legs trembled and she collapsed to her knees, the Keyblade falling from her hand in grief. What should she do?! What _could_ she do?!  
  
Kyoko turned to Madoka, worry on her face, though it quickly changed to a scowl.  
  
“Don’t just lie there!” Kyoko shouted, grabbing Madoka by the shoulders and shaking her.  
  
“W-what do we do?” Madoka said.  
  
Mami was already rushing towards the downed Sayaka, while Nagisa shot more bubbles at the Heartless, knocking it off it’s feet.  
  
“We need to get out of here!” Mami said. “Kyoko, start the car! Nagisa, keep it distracted! Madoka! Help me get Sayaka into the car.”  
  
Kyoko looked back at the Heartless, and then at Mami. She snarled, but nodded, running towards the car.  
  
Madoka managed to jolt herself into action, and with Mami’s help, lifted the blackened Sayaka, carrying her to the backseat of the car. As she looked back, she saw more Heartless begin to appear. Nagisa’s bubble shots could only do so much.  
  
“We’re ready!” Mami said.  
  
“Alright!” Nagisa let off one last blast and then ran towards the car, diving in and shutting the door behind her as Kyoko floored it. Once again, the tires screeched and the girls took off.  


* * *

  
“She’s still breathing!” Nagisa shouted. “Where are those first aid supplies?”  
  
“They were back at the station when it blew up! I don’t have any more!” Mami answered.  
  
“So what do we do then?”  
  
“We could find a hospital!” Mami suggested.  
  
“A hospital?!” Nagisa froze. “Y-yes, that’s probably for the best.”  
  
“We haven’t seen anyone so far! What the hell makes you think that there’s going to be doctors there?” Kyoko interjected.  
  
“Maybe not, but their will still be medical supplies!”  
  
“For this?! Do you even _know_ how to treat burns like that?”  
  
Like it or not, Kyoko was right. Sayaka was in terrible shape, those had to be, what, second or third degree burns? Just looking at her blackened body made Madoka feel ill. If they weren’t treated, her odds of surviving looked low. And even if they did somehow manage to stabilize her, she’d be in no shape to travel for a long while. They’d have to hole up in that building, defending her, putting themselves at risk and…  
  
_Oh god! What the hell is wrong with me?! Was I really about to justify leaving Sayaka behind?!_ Madoka recoiled in horror. What was happening? To this world? To her? Sayaka was her best friend, and she was… glowing?  
  
“Somethings happening!” Nagisa said.  
  
The car suddenly swerved, and Mami shouted. “Kyoko, eyes on the road!”  
  
“Fine!”  
  
The others watched in awe as the Sayaka’s injuries were enveloped in blue light, and began to heal. First the burns faded as new skin grew over them...  


* * *

“Sayaka! You’re okay!” Madoka embraced her.  
  
“I’m… okay?” She was confused. How were they in the car now? They were fighting that fire sword thing, and then… “W-what happened?”  
  
“You took a hit! Real bad!” Madoka said.  
  
“How bad?” Sayaka said, still trying to comprehend what was going on. First of all, Madoka was smiling, and that was good. Secondly, why were her clothes damaged? Then the memory came back. The fire. The pain.  
  
“Third-degree burns bad.” Kyoko said. "You were on fire. And not the good kind of on fire."  
  
“What?! But then, how am I still here?!”  
  
“You… healed.” Nagisa said, relieved.  
  
“Healed, what do you mean healed?”  
  
“Look!”  
  
Madoka pointed to Sayaka’s leg. The cut there was healing, radiating a blue light as it did so. It didn’t even hurt. She looked towards the cut on her side, and her arm, and they were doing the same as well.  
  
“Whoa.” Sayaka looked herself over. There wasn’t a single trace of her injuries. In fact, in fact, she felt perfectly fine. The only trace of the battle were her damaged and bloodstained clothes. “ _Cool.”_  
  
“Well it seems we don’t have to go to a hospital then.” Mami said. Nagisa breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
“So then where _are_ we going? We never decided that.” Kyoko said.  
  
“Well...”  
  
“Hey, guys? I think I see some cars out there, following us.” Nagisa was turned around, looking out the back window.  
  
“Cars?” Kyoko looked in the mirror. “Yeah, I see them too.”  
  
“More survivors?” Mami wondered.  
  
Madoka and Sayaka turned to look as the vehicles. They weren’t like any car she had seen. They were oddly colored, and the grill in the front of the vehicle looked more like the teeth of some dangerous animal. What they were was horrifyingly confirmed when she noticed the heart-shaped hood ornament.  
  
“Heartless!” Madoka shouted.  
  
“As cars?!” Mami exclaimed in disbelief.  
  
“Floor it!” Sayaka shouted.  
  
“Are you kidding me?!” Kyoko sped up, though the Heartless cars sped up as well.  
  
“Were not losing them!” Sayaka said.  
  
“Open the windows!” Mami said.  
  
“What?!” Kyoko asked. “Why- oh!”  
  
She nodded as Mami picked up her musket. With the window lowered, Mami leaned out, and opened fire. A single shot bullseyed one of the Heartless, destroying it. “Nagisa, help keep them off us!”  
  
“As you wish!” As the back window was opened, Nagisa inhaled, and blew out of the trumpet, and a flood of bubbles flowed forth. Upon impacting with the car Heartless, they exploded, obscuring their view briefly, though when it cleared up, the Heartless were nowhere to be seen.  
  
“Awesome!” Sayaka said.  
  
“Not awesome!” Kyoko said, looking to the side. “I see more incoming.”  
  
True to her words, more Heartless had joined the pursuit, turning off of side streets. Now, alongside the cars were Heartless resembling motorbikes. Rubble in the road didn’t appear to mean much to them, as they simply jumped over it.  
  
Nagisa released another stream of bubbles, though the motorbikes swerved, dodging the attacks, only to be shot and destroyed by Mami.  
  
Sayaka watched as instead of reloading the musket after firing it, she simply discarded it, and then somehow conjured a new one to shoot.  
  
“Ah crap.” Kyoko said.  
  
“What?” Mami asked.  
  
“Yes, it would appear we are managing to hold them at bay.” Nagisa offered.  
  
“Yeah, those ones! Not these!” Sayaka pointed forwards, to where a group of rocky looking Heartless were blocking part of an intersection. As she watched, a massive pile of sand rose up to form into some sort of worm like monstrosity.  
  
“Everybody hold on!” Kyoko shouted. She gripped the wheel and swerved hard, throwing everybody about as she turned onto the freeway. Mami was hurled back inside the car, landing on Kyoko’s lap before being pushed back to her seat.  
  
“Ouch! Where did you get your license?!” Mami demanded.  
  
“License? Why would I need one of those things?” Kyoko asked.  
  
“Then where did you even learn how to drive?”  
  
“GTA.” Kyoko said, as she swerved the car violently, throwing everybody off balance.  
  
“ _Grand Theft Auto?_ Are you _serious_?!”  
  
“Well if you didn’t like that, then ya' ain't going to like how I found us this car. Although it is thematically appropriate...”  
  
“WHAT?!”  
  
“Hey, in my defense, the guy was definitely already a Heartless! He wasn’t gonna be using it! Consider it Toyota’s generous and well-publicized-”  
  
“Don’t even go there!”  
  
“Fine, fine, but we really do need - _fuck!_ ” Kyoko swore as she narrowly dodged a pile of debris on the road, sending everybody tumbling again.  
  
“Let me drive! It seems I’m the only one here with an _actual driver’s license_!”  
  
“Well, that would be fine and dandy, _except were currently fleeing for our lives and you have guns!_ What am I supposed to do, chuck a spear?”  
  
“Can you guys please settle this later!” Sayaka shouted, and then grunted in pain as a large bump bounced her head into the ceiling.  
  
“Yes, their numbers are only increasing!” Nagisa warned.  
  
“Don’t these guys ever let up?!” Sayaka moaned.  
  
“Fine!” Mami said, leaning back outside the window.  
  
Despite their best efforts however, the horde just kept coming. Bullets and explosions were poured into the crowd, but it seemed that whenever a Heartless was felled, another would take its place in short order.  
  
“There’s just no end to them!” Nagisa said. “What do we do?”  
  
Mami frantically looked around, and then locked on something ahead of them. “The bridge!”  
  
“What?” Nagisa looked at the bridge as they approached it.  
  
“Nagisa! Bring it down! When were part of the way across, hit the ground with everything you’ve got!”  
  
“What?! Are you sure?!” Nagisa exclaimed in disbelief.  
  
“Do it!”  
  
“O-okay!”  
  
True to Mami’s orders, as the girl’s car passed across the bridge, she took in a very deep breath, and then blew on the horn as hard as she could. An entire storm of bubbles emerged from the instrument, aimed directly at the ground. A deafening explosion threw up a massive cloud of dust and mist.  
  
“Whoa...” Sayaka said as she saw the cloud clear. Part of the bridge had indeed been destroyed, rendering it uncrossable. The Heartless horde attempted to brake. Some were successful, though those near the front were less fortunate, and careened straight off the bridge into the river below.  
  
“That was amazing!” Sayaka said.  
  
“Thanks...” Nagisa slumped back into her seat, breathing heavily. “It would seem the coast is clear, for now.”  
  
They drove along in silence for a while before Kyoko spoke up.  
  
“So then, do we have a destination or am I just running down the fuel tank?”  
  
“We should… LOOK OUT!” Mami shouted. Ahead of them the road warped and twisted, and a massive wall of concrete rose up in front of them.  
  
Kyoko slammed on the brakes, and the car skidded, throwing everybody forwards. They barely managed to avoid colliding with the wall.  
  
“What the hell was that?” Sayaka said.  
  
“The roads blocked!”  
  
Everyone exited the car.  
  
“What?” Sayaka said as she looked at the new barrier.  
  
“How are we going to get around this?” Madoka asked.  
  
“ _You won’t._ ” Said a voice from up above. Sayaka felt a chill come over her. She recognized that voice. _Homura._ She was standing atop the wall looking down at them. And what the hell was she _wearing_? Some sort of backless, showgirl style skimpy dress that appeared to me made of feathers. She carried a black bow had _fucking wings._ Her eyes glowed with unnatural purple light while fires of the same color danced around her. “This ends here and now!”  
  
Everything Sayaka felt was now confirmed.  
  
“ _You, Homura Akemi, are a demon!”_  
  
Sayaka brandished her sword at Homura. “Who the hell are you to tell us that?! What gives you the right?!”  
  
Homura's eyes narrowed. A violet string appeared on the bow as lightning flashed in the sky above. “You won’t be going anywhere without my say so! This is _my world._ ”  


* * *

  
_And so we are nearing the close of the Mitakihara Arc, which should wrap up in about the next chapter. I have to say it went on longer than I expected. Chapters 7-9 were originally intended to be one chapter (as were chapters 2-3 and chapters 5-6), but it kept getting so long that I ended up breaking it up as I wrote.  
  
Also, expect the first appearance of a Final Fantasy character next chapter. You'll probably never guess who! (Though I have left hints.)_  
  
___Again, thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!__  
  
~Dragonexx_


	11. Stormbreak

Homura glared at Sayaka. Always the defiant one, the wannabe hero, ignorant and bullheaded, who dragged everyone else around her down, selfishly putting them at risk. Thinking herself the invincible savior, but at always the weakest when faced with cold reality.

She had her cutlass back now, brandishing it at Homura, and she had to assume that the others had their weapons as well. They were ultimately irrelevant, but her heart sank at the sight of Madoka. Here she was, bruised, burned, bleeding, and afraid.

Homura then stiffened as she saw Madoka follow Sayaka’s lead and drop into a fighting stance.

_After everything I’ve done for her?! This is how she thanks me?! I- No… No… She's right to hate me. And she’s afraid, hurt, she doesn’t know what’s happening. Don’t worry Madoka, I’ll fix this._

It was clear the current setup hadn’t worked. Instead, she’d bring Madoka to the castle. Turn that place into a fucking stronghold. They’d start over. Madoka would forget all this horror, and live with her in luxury. She could be a princess. A queen. Her queen.

She didn’t like it. She hated it. She hated herself for wanting it. Madoka deserved better than her. But there didn’t appear to be any other choice.

Homura gestured, and the world warped around Madoka, prepared to take her to the island. Instead, Madoka’s eyes glowed. It was brief, but it was enough. For in that moment, Homura saw the Goddess. A tall beautiful woman in a white and pink dress, her angelic wings spread wide. Her expression was neutral, dispassionate, but with a hint of sorrow. Homura was horrified all the same.

“No! Stay away from her!” Homura cried. She raised her bow, arrows of violet fire forming. The Goddess did the same, an arrow of pink fire readied. “You won’t hurt her any more! I’ve made sure of that! She’s safe! She’s free!”

Homura fired at the same time as the Goddess, and their arrows collided. From the clash came a roar of noise and pain. Homura felt herself be lifted off her feet, and hurled about as if in a storm.

When the light faded, Homura found herself lying on the ground. The wall she had created had crumbled, nearby windows had shattered. The others lay in the area as well, groaning. She felt sore, and had a headache, but she pushed through it. She couldn’t stop here. She turned to Madoka who lay against the car, attempting to rise to her feet as well.

She held out her hand, intending to try again, only to be shocked when nothing happened.

“What?! My powers?”

A voice sounded in her head. _{It’s the Keyblade! It’s interfering with your influence over this World! The Goddess is still trying to reassert herself!}_

Was that Kyosuke? She responded telepathically. { _What should I do?}_

_{You need to-}_

The communication went silent suddenly, and the area became cold. A shadow passed over them.

Homura looked up to see what she initially thought was a Wraith, only to quickly realize that it was a Heartless when she recognized the symbol.

The Wraith-Heartless lifted a burning javelin, and prepared to hurl the explosive projectile downward, only for something to hit it head on.

Madoka had thrown her Keyblade, impacting the javelin as it was about to be thrown, causing it to explode and knocking the Heartless into a building.

Homura watched as the Keyblade reappeared in Madoka’s hand, and she leaped towards the enemy, a pink aura surrounding her.

** \------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **

[She wasn’t going to run this time.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xp_3r_nFGs) It would pay for what it had done to her family. Even if they were gone forever, they’d at least be avenged.

As the Heartless extricated itself from the building, Madoka leaped towards it, and slashed Crystal Clarity across it’s chest. A wound was scored, though like the fiery heartless from before, it didn’t go down it one hit.

Instead, as Madoka kicked off of it, she saw a large disembodied hand began floating towards her.

She held her Keyblade out to guard against the attack as the hand attempted to grab her, only for it to be engulfed in a violet explosion.

As she landed, she saw Homura look to confirm her safety, before continuing her volley of arrows. Mami and Nagisa joined in on the assault.

The blasts kicked up a large cloud of multicolored smoke, briefly obscuring the Heartless. After a few tense seconds, a barrage of razor sharp swords emerged from the cloud. Madoka rolled out of the way, narrowly avoiding decapitation as one of them came uncomfortably close to her neck.

After the swords, she saw a flash of light, and instinctively leaped away again, as a fireball exploded. Beneath her, Sayaka rushed forwards. As the cloud cleared, she leaped up and struck a blow against the Heartless’ arm, just as it was about to hurl it’s javelin again. The shot went wild, flying into a nearby storefront and exploding.

Kyoko followed Sayaka’s example, extending her spear, and slashing at its disembodied hand. As it reeled away, she returned the spear to its normal state, and then hurled it, striking the hand in the palm and pinning it to a wall.

“Hit it!” Mami shouted.

Homura, Mami, and Nagisa opened fire on the arm, a barrage of arrows, bullets, and bubbles that utterly destroyed their target.

The Heartless attempted to back away, flying up into the air.

“No! No escape!” Homura shouted. With a thrust of her wings, Homura took off. She was faster than the Heartless was, and got above it. From there, she rained down arrows, bursts of violet fire cutting it off, and forcing it back to the ground.

As it turned and attempted to retaliate with fireballs, Madoka leaped up and struck it in the back, releasing a burst of pink colored energy as she did so. The strike drew a jagged blue glowing wound across the monster and it went spiraling to the ground with a large crash.

From there, it attempted to rise, only to be impaled upon Kyoko’s spear, while Sayaka charged at it, slashing wildly.

Both were forced to fall back when the Heartless released a burst of flame. It righted itself and swung the flaming javelin. Both narrowly avoided the series of thrusts.

When the moved out of melee range, the Heartless immediately turned towards Madoka and hurled a fireball.

Before it could approach her, a burst of purple fire intercepted it. Homura landed in front of Madoka, and began opening fire on the Heartless.

“Madoka, stay back!” Homura shouted.

“What?! No!” Madoka said. She leaped over the scowling Homura, and struck the Heartless in the side of the head, knocking it back and drawing another glowing blue wound.

The creature attempted to fall back again, though Madoka wasn’t having any of that. The energetic pink aura surrounded her again, and she leaped off the ground. As she did so, the Heartless materialized it’s javelin again and hurled it. Madoka twisted in the air, leaping off the weapon and straight up towards the Heartless.

At the apex of her jump, she channeled the aura into the Keyblade, and came crashing down on the Heartless. A massive blue glowing wound was torn across it’s chest, nearly splitting it in half. Madoka grabbed onto the robe of the Heartless and used it to hurl herself even higher into the air while the The Heartless jerked and writhed as it fell back to the ground.

From her second jump, Madoka came crashing down again like a pink meteor, striking the beast head on, slamming it into the ground, and releasing a massive explosion of pink energy.

As the aura faded, Madoka leaped off, bouncing back as the Heartless slumped on the ground. The creature’s body began breaking up, parts of it sloughing off and dispersing into wisps of darkness. Finally, the main body exploded in a burst of darkness, and from that cloud emerged a gigantic glowing heart-shaped crystalline object, that rose into the air and faded away.

“I-is it dead?” Nagisa asked.

“I think so.” Madoka answered.

“Then this is concluded.” Homura said. She turned to the others, her eyes still with those severe bags and hint of sadness.

“Alright, then.” Sayaka said. “Howsabout you tell us what’s going on then.”

This didn’t seem to go over well with Homura. She scowled, tilting her head. “And why? It won’t matter in the end.”

“Why? You owe me that much!”

“[Owe you?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28DFSRT7gxs&index=14&list=PLgM9f9lUw8i7JQnxqOPmb7vE30hwPU2FA) _Owe you?!_ ” Homura’s eyes blazed. “After everything you’ve done, you have the _nerve_ to think I owe you? _You?!”_

“What the hell are you talking about?” Sayaka asked.

“Sayaka the simpleton. Sayaka the lovestruck. Sayaka the judgmental. Sayaka the arrogant. Sayaka the self righteous. Sayaka the insecure. Sayaka the stubborn. The narrow-minded petulant fool who’s selfish crusade only harms those she thinks she’s protecting. Who despite all this, is a weakling with a heart of glass, easily breaking, the shards tearing into those closest to her. Why should I owe you _anything?_ ”

Sayaka backed away, shock, confusion, and outrage on her face. Above, lightning flashed in the sky constantly. Bolts began striking, first buildings, then the ground.

“Homura?” Mami stepped forwards. “Perhaps if we all calmed down.”

“Calm down? That’s rich from you!” Homura said. “Mami, the girl with a will as hard as diamond, and as brittle as diamond. A girl so lonely, that’s she’s willing to put others in harms way and set them down a path to their own doom just to escape the emptiness. Who can’t handle the truth about the world, and breaks, like all the others.”

“What the hell is this all about?” Sayaka demanded. “And what are you talking about.”

“I apologize, Madoka. Placing you with them was clearly a mistake on my part. I should have gone with my original plan. Don’t worry. I’ll fix what’s gone wrong with you and shall strive to do better in the future."

_Be wary. She is unstable. Don’t trust her._

“W-what?” Madoka asked. Was that the not-voice from her dream?

_I agree. It is a shame. Poor girl._

And the other voice!

“Fix her?! What the hell?! Explain yourself!” Sayaka brandished her sword. The others readied their weapons as well.

“Irrelevant.” Homura said. The world around them began to distort. “The rest of you are irrelevant. Madoka is coming with me.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.” Madoka said. She pointed Crystal Clarity at Homura, who’s eyes widened. The distortions receded. She almost looked on the brink of tears. Madoka began to think that perhaps Homura could be talked down. Her expression hardened however, and her wings spread out. An aura of violet flame engulfed her.

“ _No!_ _No! No! No! No!”_ The world around her twisted and distorted. From those distortions came strange and otherworldly creatures. Dolls dressed in funerary attire. Strange wind up soldiers. Animate teeth. Unnatural looking birds. The ground cracked, and red spider-lilies sprouted up. “ _No! No! No!”_

_You won’t be able to hold her for long!_

_I concur. I can help you again child, but for this, you must provide me with a direct means of entry!_

“What?”

_Yes! Hold your Keyblade to the sky! Focus on the storm above!_

** \------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **

Homura watched as Madoka lifted the Keyblade into the air. The tip of it glowed and then lightning struck down from the clouds above, directly into Madoka’s Keyblade. The electricity expanded outwards, weaving through the air to form some sort of crackling magic circle.

Then the most unexpected thing happened. A massive lightning bolt struck the ground behind Madoka, and didn’t relent, forming into some sort of pillar of energy connecting the ground and the sky.

Then from within the pillar a [_massive hand_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHscqjkXEf4&t=51s) emerged. It went straight for Madoka, grabbing her and the others.

The pillar faded, revealing their abductor. A gigantic old man with an incredibly long beard, wearing a flowing robe. Electricity crackled all over him. The being glowed with a radiant light as he lifted a staff into the air.

Lighting erupted from the tip of the staff and washed over the entire area. Buildings were blasted apart, cars exploded, power lines went haywire, and her familiars were scoured from the world.

Homura held up her hands, and a purple barrier formed, intercepting the bolts aimed against herself.

The being began to float into the air.

“No! Give her back! You won’t hurt her!” Homura’s voice resonated as she spread her wings and took off towards the giant man.

The man responded by calmly lifting his staff into the air. Lightning struck it repeatedly, causing it to absorb the shocks until it was completely limned in voltage.

He then raised the staff, and hurled it. Homura, who reacted too slowly, found her world engulfed in blinding light and searing pain.

**\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

The Devil stood before the Goddess.

“What have you done!” The Devil raged. “What have you done to her!”

The Goddess said nothing. She merely looked upon the Devil with sadness. Her eyes were filling with tears. Slowly, she turned away, and began to leave.

“Don’t you dare ignore me! Answer my question! What have you done with her!” Sadly, the Devil did not receive an answer.

She hurled herself after the Goddess, only for her to vanish. The Devil fell.

** \------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **

“ _Why would I ever want to play with you, freak?”_

“ _Yeah, haha! Freak! No one wants a loser like you! Get lost, freak!”_

“ _Yeah, her I bet her mom’s a crack-whore.”_

“ _Stop! Please!”_

“ _Crack baby! Crack baby! You’re dad probably didn’t want you! Small wonder!”_

“ _You don’t know that!”_

“ _Nobody wants you, crack baby! Get lost!”_

“ _Crack baby! Crack baby!”_

“ _STOP!”_

_Impact. Pain. Falling. Tears. Blurry vision. Her glasses were broken. Sobs._

“ _What’s going on here?!”_

“ _Homura was being mean!”_

“ _She hit me!”_

“ _She was pulling on my hair! I had to make her stop!”_

“ _No! That’s not true!”_

“ _Don’t lie to me!”_

“ _Yeah! Liar!”_

“ _What can you expect from someone like her though?”_

_She began to feel weak. Her chest was hurting. The tears were coming all the faster._

“ _It’s clear you need to be disciplined! Come with me!”_

_Homura ran._

** \------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **

Everything hurt. Her body had been burned black and skeletal, though it still moved. Slowly, organs began to reform, followed by veins, muscle, and then flesh and braided hair. Finally, a set of clothes formed. A school uniform, followed by a set of glasses.

Akemi Homura stood up.

“Madoka? Madoka?”

Where was she? What had happened? She looked around at the crater she had been lying in, and up at the dark clouds, finally after so long, releasing rain. She remembered the giant. Madoka was gone. She couldn’t find her. He must had taken her.

“MADOKA!” Akemi Homura sobbed. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

“Boy did you ever screw this one up. It was obvious it would happen though.”

Akemi Homura turned to see who had spoken and gasped. She looked very similar to herself. However, she was wearing a lacy black dress. She had long black hair with red spider-lilies embedded it it, and bare feet. Strange red spiderweb markings descended from her eyes, making Akemi Homura think of tears. Strangest of all however, were her arms, which were purely skeletal.

Akemi Homura smiled, and collapsed to her knees, breathing a sigh of relief, even laughing a bit.

"What's so funny?"

“This isn’t real! This isn’t real! This is just another nightmare! Madoka’s fine! She’s safe!”

A solid fist struck Akemi Homura in the cheek, and she was sent sprawling to the ground. Homulilly straddled her, her skeletal hands around her throat.

“Did that feel like a dream to you?! Does _this_?!”

“What?!”

“Madoka is gone! And it’s your fault! Because you were too weak and cowardly to do what needed be done to keep her safe. And now it’s your fault she’s gone!”

“No! She was happy!” Akemi Homura voice was merely a rasp, struggling to speak through Homulilly’s grip. She tried to pull her off, but the grip was like iron.

“Happy? We could make her happy and safe if we had kept tighter control of her!”

“Control her?! She’s not some doll in a dollhouse!” It was getting hard to breathe now. Her sight was going blurry, and her arms felt tired.

“And look what happened! It’s _your fault_!”

“Is this a bad time?”

Homura turned, to see Kyosuke standing nearby. She then looked back. She was in her Puella Magi uniform. She didn’t have her glasses. Her hair was loose. Homulilly was nowhere to be seen.

“Kyosuke.” Homura picked herself up.

He looked frustrated as he gazed up at the sky. “Ramuh the Stormbringer. I have to say, I did not anticipate the interference of an Esper.”

“Ramuh? Esper? What are you talking about?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. This World wouldn’t know about such things.”

“ _This_ World?” Homura stepped back, and aimed her bow at Kyosuke again. “How do you know about these things?”

Kyosuke shrugged. “I suppose this guise has worn out it’s usefulness.”

“Guise? So you aren’t Kyosuke!”

“No. Kyosuke's appearance was simply a convenient cover while I observed things here. I must be careful when I travel, for there are those who would do harm upon me. But first introductions.” Kyosuke’s body flickered and warped, and wisps curled off of him like some sort of mist. When the cloud faded, in his place stood a tan-skinned elderly man in a black longcoat and white undershirt. He was bald though his eyebrows and goatee indicated silver hair. His eyes were yellow. When he spoke, his voice was deep and raspy. “You may call me [Xehanort](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjB6fwPRma0).”

** \------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **

_Again, thanks to The Name Of Love for beta-reading and idea sounding!_

_~Dragonexx_


	12. End of the Beginning

[The first thing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcuJW-Dx7bs) Madoka was aware of was the sound, crackling thunder. The next was the sharp smell of ozone. Finally, when she dared to open her eyes, she gasped at where she was. She was lying on a cloudy platform hovering over some sort of gigantic hand!  
  
She looked up, to see what the hand was connected to, and gasped even harder. Holding her was a gigantic old man, with a beard so long it was almost ankle length. He wore flowing robes and lightning crackled around him. His eyes glowed with power.  
  
She looked around the area. She appeared to be inside the eye of some sort of massive storm. She couldn’t see anything resembling ground or the sky, both obscured by the thick, swirling clouds. Lying next to her were her friends, all seemingly unconscious.  
  
“Who… are you?” Madoka asked the radiant being.  
  
“ **I am Ramuh, Esper of Storms and Knowledge.** ” His voice was mixed with the sound of crackling lightning and booming thunder.  
  
Madoka heard groaning nearby. She turned to see Sayaka and the others stirring.  
  
“What’s with all the racket, Madoka? I… _Holy shit!”_ Sayaka looked up to see Ramuh and her eyes widened. She drew her cutlass.  
  
“ **Peace, child. I mean you no harm.** ”  
  
“What are you?” Mami asked, awestruck.  
  
“ **I suppose it isn’t too much effort to answer again. I am Ramuh, Esper of Storms and Knowledge. Also known as the Archon of Storms, Lord of Levin, and the Fulgurian.** ”  
  
“Is it just me, or did that not explain anything?” Kyoko asked.  
  
“ **I suppose your World has never heard of Espers before. We are great spirits. Ideas and concepts given Heart and body. We have taken many forms and names across many Worlds.** ”  
  
“Okay, but the more important question, is where are we?!” Sayaka said, looking around.  
  
“ **You are in the Corridors of the Sky, also called the Lanes Between.** ”  
  
“Between what?”  
  
“ **Between Worlds.** ”  
  
“We’re out in space?!” Nagisa said. “That’s amazing! Though how we are breathing is somewhat of a mystery...”  
  
“ **I should say space in a manner of speaking.”**  
  
“What manner?”  
  
“ **A World can be many things. Some may encompass a city, a kingdom, a country, or even something as small as just a series of islands. Some may be massively large, a continent, a planet, a solar system, a galaxy, or even multiple galaxies. When I say World, I mean something akin to what some call a universe.** ”  
  
“You mean like we’re in another dimension?” Madoka asked.  
  
“ **Between dimensions, to be more accurate.** ” Ramuh answered.  
  
“So then, next question. What the hell has been happening these past few days?!” Kyoko demanded.  
  
“ **The Heartless have invaded your World, as is their nature. At the same time, a Keyblade has chosen young Madoka as its wielder.** ”  
  
Madoka summoned Crystal Clarity to her hand. “I remember… You spoke to me a bit in a dream a few days ago.”  
  
“ **Indeed, a shame our conversation had to be cut short.** ”  
  
“So then, what exactly is going on?”  
  
“ **This is a long story...** ”

* * *

[Homura had to admit](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjB6fwPRma0), as ugly as it was, the castle _was_ useful. Currently, she reclined on her throne, flanked by two Clara dolls, while Xehanort stood before her.  
  
“Who are you?” Homura asked. “Give me a reason why I should trust you.”  
  
Xehanort said nothing. Instead, he held out his hand. There was a crackle of electricty, a burst of light, and then he was holding a key shaped blade. It was similar in shape, but only in the loosest sense. Unlike Madoka’s, this one looked to be made of some sort of black metal and vaguely reminded Homura of an axe. It had a strange blue-glowing eye on both the tip of the blade, and on the chain hanging from the end. At the base of the blade was an engraving of a goats head.  
  
Homura’s eyes widened as she leaned forwards. “Is that…?”  
  
“A Keyblade. Yes. I too, bear this burden. And make no mistake, it is a burden.” Xehanort snapped his fingers, and one of the bug heartless appeared before him.  
  
Homura stood up, and aimed her bow at him. Her familiars grew tense as well. “You can _control them?”_  
  
“To a degree, yes.”  
  
“And yet you let them hurt Madoka!”  
  
“It’s not a question of letting so much as ability. Were I able to, Madoka would have been safe and unmolested. The Heartless however, will seek out and corrupt Hearts, to create more of themselves, by instinct alone. Those with the proper knowledge and ability can control the Heartless, but I am not the only such one. There are others who are capable of this as well such as Maleficent, an evil fairy, who seeks power and conquest. These were her Heartless, they obeyed her commands to sow destruction and chaos. I, on the other hand, like to think of my self as a scientist. A student of the Heart. What I and my colleagues seek is knowledge and balance. It was such curiosities about the Heart that originally brought me to this World. Imagine it, the ability to separate one's Heart from the body, and yet remain connected all the same. Empowered even. It was fascinating to me! I had to know, though in my research into this World, I came across many things that troubled me.  
  
“Make no mistake Homura, the life of a key-bearer is a hard one. We are constantly hounded by the forces of darkness. True peace is impossible for us. But it is a life I _chose_. In my youth I was approached by a master of the art, and accepted his offer. He performed a ritual of inheritance, granting me the ability to wield a Keyblade, and then I was trained. I have made many mistakes in my long life, but I have never considered that to be one of them. However, others may be chosen without their knowledge or consent. Keyblades are in some ways, sentient, perhaps even sapient. They can manifest for a person on their own, binding them to a life of hardship and turmoil. A boy from my own homeworld was chosen in such a manner, and his life has been turned upside down, loosing friends, family, and even his very identity. I would not see young Madoka walk down a similar path.”  
  
“Why?” Homura asked. Her hand began to shake. The bow vanished. Everything he was saying filled her with dread. “What is Madoka to you?”  
  
Xehanort looked outside towards the balcony. “If you would, please come with me, it’s easier to show you.”  
  
Homura followed him, only to feel something grab her hand and try to pull her back. She turned, to see a frightened looking girl, with black hair in braids, and glasses over her violet eyes.  
  
“A-are we sure we can trust him? _”_ Akemi Homura asked, holding on to Homura's wrist. “This is all sounding too suspicious.”  
  
“Of course _you’d_ say that, worthless coward.” The was a sound of flapping wings, and a dusting of black feathers. The Devil descended from above. “You were not questioned, yet you speak out of turn.”  
  
“It’s just that a creepy old man shows up claiming to know Madoka. This doesn’t feel right.”  
  
“Did it not feel right to stop fair Madoka from contracting? Did it not feel right to free her from the wretched Goddess? Your worthlessness knows no bounds. Weak and craven. Pathetic. You have not the strength to do the deeds that need be done. Begone!”  
  
“But-”  
  
"Unless you have a better suggestion? Surely, the little failure of a girl has a plan that will allow us to find and rescue our dear Madoka. We're all ears!" The Devil taunted.  
  
"I..." Akemi Homura looked down to the ground, her lip trembling.  
  
"As was thought. Begone!" Akemi Homura was shoved away.  
  
Homura turned forwards, following Xehanort as he stepped out to the balcony.  
  
“Homura, how much do you know about other Worlds?”  
  
“I have an alien locked up in my basement, as you saw earlier.”  
  
Xehanort gave an amused grin. “Not what I meant. When I say World, I mean more than the limited concept of planets. A World could be as grand as a universe or as small as a forest, or anywhere in between.”  
  
Xehanort raised his keyblade towards the sky. A beam of light shot upwards into the clouds, and they parted, revealing a starry sky, even though it was only noon. Though shocked, what was more shocking was the realization that these stars were completely different from the normal ones.  
  
“What is this?” Homura asked.  
  
“[Behold!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btmSuNcxiIU) The True Sky which all Worlds share!” Xehanort gestured to the brilliant display. “Now, realize that each star you see is a World, and you can begin to understand the importance of Madoka.”  
  
“Understand what?”  
  
“Once, each one of those stars, each one of those Worlds was part of a grand World, the First World. A World so massive that it defies comprehension, in an age long faded into myth. In the beginning, there was only darkness, an endless void of chaos and discord. Eventually, through it’s utter randomness, it spawned light, in the form of Kingdom Hearts!”  
  
“Kingdom Hearts? What is that?”  
  
“People have Hearts, the core of their being. No two are truly alike. Worlds also have Hearts, embodying all aspects of it’s nature. Kingdom Hearts is the heart of all Worlds and all people, the Heart of the universe itself, the source of ultimate knowledge and power.  
  
“Imagine it. The Original World, a golden age of peace and prosperity, where people, blessed by the light of Kingdom Hearts achieved feats of science and magic that have never been replicated since. There was no hardship, no want, no grief or suffering. A paradise! Unfortunately, it was not to last. The true nature of mankind could not be denied and soon made itself apparent. The Keyblade War was inevitable...”  
  
“T-the Keyblade War?” Homura asked. Unbidden, her thoughts drifted to the key Madoka wielded, making her anxious.  
  
Xehanort gestured with his Keyblade, and everything around them began to shimmer, as images appeared, imposing themselves over the castle. The knot in her stomach worsened as she saw a massive dry, dusty, wasteland, littered with dull, rusted, Keyblades. There had to be hundreds, no, thousands, maybe even more!  
  
“The Keyblade Graveyard. These lifeless keys used to be full of power, united with the Hearts of their masters. In that age, people began to covet the light wanting it for themselves, and became jealous, fearful of what would happen should the light belong to another. They began to fight over it. And from that greed and selfishness, darkness returned to the World and with it, the Heartless came as countless warriors sought the _χ-blade_.”  
  
“Keyblade?”  
  
“No, not like the keys that Madoka or I wield." Xehanort gestured and a hologram of the greek letter _χ_ appeared over his palm. " _Chi_ a most ancient letter. Some say ‘ _Kye’_ but the meaning is the same. Death, a letter that spells endings. This _χ-blade_ was the counterpart to Kingdom Hearts, it’s protector. All other Keyblades were originally forged in imitation of this true blade, in order to attempt to claim Kingdom Hearts for themselves.  
  
“On this barren soil, Keyblades of light and darkness were locked in combat as a great Keyblade War raged across the World. Countless Keyblade wielders gave up their lives all in pursuit of the ultimate key. Great and terrible weapons were unleashed and nightmarish magics rent the land asunder in a war so massive and awful that all the conflicts of today pale in comparison to that horror. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, no one prevailed. There were no victors in that war. The clash shattered the _χ-blade_ into twenty shards, seven of light, and thirteen of darkness. The World was torn apart, as Kingdom Hearts itself was swallowed up by the darkness, never to be seen again. On that land, darkness prevailed, and the light expired _."_ ”

* * *

“ **Or so it had been written. In truth, small fragments of light survived in the hearts of children, and the World was preserved, though separate, apart, alone. And thus, are the Worlds we live in today.** ”  
  
That was a lot to take in. A golden age of fairy tales in a World of light. A war bringing darkness leading to the destruction of the old World and the creation of the current one.  
  
“Jeez, this whole thing sound like the plot to some cheesy RPG.” Kyoko said. She looked at her spear. “But, it makes as much sense as anything else that’s been happening lately.”  
  
“So, I suppose, that leads into the next question. What is the Keyblade?” Mami asked.  
  
Ramuh looked at Madoka.  
  
“You told me that it was something like a blessing and a curse. You talked about… destiny?” She asked.  
  
“ **A Keyblade is a wondrous device, shaped and empowered by it’s wielders strong Heart. Among it’s most simplest abilities, it can open or close any lock or seal, and it can act as a conduit for magic. However, each Keyblade is unique, just as each Heart is unique. As the wielder develops their own capabilities and forms connections with other Hearts, it’s abilities may be improved.** ”  
  
“When you say Heart, it doesn’t sound like you mean the blood-pumping organ.” Madoka asked.  
  
“ **Indeed. Many names for it exist. Core. Essence. Nature. Spirit. But Heart is the truest of all. The very center of being, from which spring emotions, willpower, connections and personality. This is also from where the Heartless are born. When a Heart becomes consumed by darkness, it is separated from the body, and transformed into a dark creature, a monster which exists only to sow discord and spread their darkness to others, a cruel creature entirely without empathy or reason, and thus are they called Heartless. These beings of darkness who invade and consume entire Worlds.**  
  
“ **And then there is the Keyblade. The Heartless have a great and instinctive fear of this weapon, for it above all others is the most dangerous to them. A Heartless can be slain by conventional forms of attack, yes, but this destruction is not permanent. It will simply reform some time later, none the worse for wear. However, a Heartless slain by a Keyblade is utterly destroyed, it’s captive Heart is set free and restored to its original state. And thus, the wielder can never know peace, for the Heartless will hunt them relentlessly and mercilessly, to end the threat they pose.** ”  
  
“Wait...” Madoka considered his words, and then gasped at the implications. She collapsed to her knees as Crystal Clarity dropped from her hands. If what Ramuh was saying was true then… “I can bring them back! Mama, Papa, and Tatsuya can come back!”  
  
She felt her vision blur as her eyes began to water. They weren’t gone forever. She could get her family back. She could get Hitomi and Kyosuke and Ms. Saotome back! She could get _everybody on Earth back!_  
  
“ **Yes, that is true.** ”  
  
“ _Haha!_ ” Madoka felt Sayaka glomp her, and they both fell over to the ground. She couldn’t blame her. It was as if a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders. They could get their families back!

* * *

Homura’s mind reeled, so much to take in. Other universes, other Keyblades, Heartless, ancient myths. But one question still remained, so she centered herself on that.  
  
“You still haven’t explained why Madoka is so important to you.”  
  
“Ah yes. She is one of the keys necessary to obtain Kingdom Hearts. As I said, the _χ-blade_ was split into twenty shards, seven of light and thirteen of darkness. Those fragments did not vanish. Instead, they have manifested themselves throughout the ages. The shards of light embody themselves in the Hearts of pure maidens. Throughout the ages, there have always been seven. Some give up the mantle after accomplishing a great deed, for others, it leaves upon their death, but there are always seven, known as Maidens of Light, or Princesses of Heart. For, while darkness may be the Hearts true essence, these women have Hearts of purest light, utterly devoid of any hint of the darkness that so taints the rest of the World, and thus are able to defy that natural law.”  
  
“Madoka...” Homura’s eyes widened. She really was that important...  
  
“Thus do I fear for the well-being of young Madoka. A Keyblade wielder is constantly hounded by the forces of darkness, but as a Princess of Heart, she is in even more danger. A pure Heart such as hers is awesomely powerful, and there are those that would stop at nothing to obtain them. Maleficent is one such villain. In the past she invaded other Worlds, and abducted the previous incarnations of the pure lights, stealing their Hearts to forge the way into Kingdom Hearts so as to gain immeasurable power. Due to my involvement, her schemes came to naught, and she appeared to have been struck down, though in truth she survived her apparent demise, and now pursues other wicked schemes.”  
  
“But you… also seek Kingdom Hearts, right?”  
  
“Indeed. The unison of Light and Darkness will bring about Kingdom Hearts, but I have a method that will not place the Princesses at risk. No harm need befall them. Likewise with the shards of darkness. They too, survive throughout the ages, though they must be made to manifest, and in a different manner from the Princesses. Hence the creation of my Organization XIII. What I want with Madoka is to free her from the burden of the Keyblade, and return her safely to your world. What you have done is admirable, to protect young Madoka from the dangers of the world. I only ask that you continue what you have done. All Madoka needs to do is exist for things to work.”  
  
“But then, what will you do with Kingdom Hearts? What makes you different from this Maleficent?” Homura asked.  
  
“I seek to restore Kingdom Hearts to it’s rightful place in a balanced universe. Ever since it’s departure, the universe has been in a slow decline, rotting and decaying. And so I ask your help, Homura. It is not an easy burden to bear, there is much that is wrong with the World, but someone has to step up, and prevent the weak from polluting the World with their endless darkness.”  
  
Homura paused, taking in all of his words. It… all made sense. Everything that she had experienced now made _sense!_ It was as if a a piece had been added to a puzzle that she wasn't even aware was incomplete, and now she could see the whole picture! Madoka was one of the few islands of kindness in a vast ocean of wretchedness. And now she was thrown into that sea, completely at it’s mercy. Homura had been right all along. She needed to be protected. The universe depended on it. She turned towards Xehanort. "Okay, I believe you."

* * *

Her celebration was short lived. There was a deafening crack of thunder. The area around them began to darken.  
  
“What’s going on?”  
  
“ **Darkness is very strong in the Lanes Between. Travelers in these areas typically fly ships, or wear special suits to protect themselves from it. In the absence of those I’ve been shielding you, but I cannot do so forever. Both the summoning, and my own energies have limits.** ”  
  
“So what do we do?” Nagisa asked.  
  
“ **There is so much more I wish to tell you, but our time is drawing short. I can take you to a nearby World. There, you should be able to board a train, which will ferry you to a wizard, known as Yen Sid.** ”  
  
“A wizard?” Mami asked.  
  
“That sounds so cool!” Nagisa said.  
  
“ **The wizard is himself a retired Keyblade Master who now dedicates his time to the study of the mystic arts. He will be able to explain to you what I could not. Will you seek him out?** ”  
  
“Yes! I will.” Madoka said.  
  
“ **Then godspeed. We will meet again.** ” Ramuh’s hand began to close on them. There was a flash of light and then… the sound of bells?

* * *

* * *

_A mostly exposition focused chapter, though I've striven to make it interesting to read and think about. Xehanort is surprisingly fun to write for. Although I still think the χ-blade looks fucking ridiculous._  
  
Credit to [Stewart92](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/316597/) for his awesome portrayal of the espers! [His fic](https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/ash-worm-kingdom-hearts-thread-2-is-tuesday-over-yet.420875/) is what inspired me to start this one!  
  
And thanks to [The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!


	13. Outset

Like before, the first thing Madoka was aware of was the sound. She could hear bells tolling, somewhere nearby. She stirred, feeling as if she was waking up from sleep, grogginess and all. She wanted to just keep her eyes shut.  
  
The bell tolled again like an incessant alarm, insisting that she couldn’t sleep. Eventually, Madoka had to agree. She was on a mission, wasn’t she?  
  
She opened her eyes to find that she was sitting on a bench. The others were next to her and gradually stirring as well.  
  
Madoka looked forwards, to see a great tower topped with the bells that had woken her. Lower to the ground, she saw a glass door, with a sign nearby saying “Twilight Town Train Station.”  
  
“Twilight Town huh?” Kyoko said. She looked up into the sky. “Seems kinda fitting.”  
  
Madoka followed her gaze, and looked up at the sky, which was a myriad of brilliant sunset colors.  
  
“Whoa!” Nagisa shouted. “Look!”  
  
Everyone turned, to see that Nagisa was leaning over a balcony. Madoka gasped as she saw a beautiful city framed by the setting sun. However, even more amazing were the _sounds_. She had only been without them for a few hours but hearing them now made her realize how much she had missed them. The sounds of the city, of vehicles driving, train whistles, of horns honking. The hustle and bustle of people going about their days, the footsteps and voices, the sounds of dogs barking and birds flapping and chirping. It was _amazing_.  
  
“This is another World, right?” Sayaka said.  
  
“Yes, that’s what Ramuh said.”  
  
“Then we’re on an alien planet!” Sayaka shouted. “Hold on! We’re the aliens! That’s awesome!”  
  
“Hey, Sayaka, your clothes!” Mami said.  
  
“Huh? What about- Oh cool!” Everyone turned to see that Sayaka’s clothes had been repaired, and then realized that the same had been done for them. Cuts, scrapes, bruises, and burns had all been healed, and the damages to their clothing had been fixed.  
  
“Now _that’s_ service.” Kyoko said.  
  
“So where do we go next! Let’s explore!” Sayaka said.  
  
“We do have a mission, remember.” Mami said.  
  
“Yes, we’re supposed to board a train that will take us to the wizard Yen Sid.”  
  
“I didn't ask before, but what? Is this Harry Potter?” Kyoko asked. “Are we going to Hogwarts?”  
  
“Hogwarts? What’s that?” Mami asked.  
  
“Wait seriously? You’ve never read _Harry Potter_? Are you kidding me?”  
  
“No, I haven’t.”  
  
“Sucks to be you. I mean, that was one of my dad’s favorite...” Kyoko trailed off, and then went silent.  
  
She never really talked about much about her past. Madoka remembered hearing about it from Sayaka some time ago. It was clearly a sensitive topic.  
  
“Let’s head into the station.” Nagisa suggested.  
  
Twilight Station was no platform 9¾, but it was suitably impressive, being incredibly spacious, with numerous trains. Their attention was immediately drawn to a blue train bearing a pointy hat decorated with moons and stars.  
  
“Soooo… can anyone tell which train will take us to the wizard?” Sayaka asked sarcastically.  
  
“Well, then all that’s left is to buy the tickets.” Mami said. She pointed out a counter.  
  
“You guys go ahead.”  
  
“Madoka?” Sayaka’s tone became worried. “Why?”  
  
She pointed towards the restrooms. “It’s no big deal. Be back in a sec’.”

* * *

Madoka looked over herself in the mirror. Her attention was drawn to the strip of gauze Mami had attached to her cheek. It felt funny, and she had to wonder why. If all their wounds had been healed, then it wasn’t necessary, wasn’t it?

And yet she felt nervous somehow. As she touched the patch, she felt a tingle. She hesitated, before gritting her teeth and pulling it off.

And there it was, staring back at her reflection. A scar. A big ugly claw mark across her left cheek. A permanent reminder of when her father’s Heartless had attacked her. Of when she lost her family. Apparently, Ramuh had his limits, or maybe it was something to do with the darkness.

 _The flash of lightning as monsters leaped upon her._

 _The unearthly laughter as green fire enveloped her._

 _Waking up to see tears run down her father’s face as a policeman spoke to him._

Madoka’s hands began to tremble. She tried to lean against the sink, but her grip felt weak.

 _Her father bleeding out on the floor as a monster stood over him._

 _Tatsuya impaled upon a burning spear._

 _The world warping in impossible ways as Homura howled._

Madoka’s throat felt raw. Her chest felt heavy. A knot formed in her stomach, and she started to feel nauseous. Her grip slipped and she collapsed to her knees. Hot tears streaked down her face as she began to sob. It would be fine, she told herself. She could fix all of this. So why did she feel so bad?

“Hey, Madoka, what’s taking so long. Are you- Oh my god!” She heard Sayaka’s voice, though it felt distant. She felt arms embrace her, and felt a warm body pressed against her. It didn’t feel real.

“Madoka?! What happened?! You were taking a while, so I...” She paused, as she turned Madoka’s head towards her and saw her scar. “Oh… oh… oh no...”

“I-it’s f-f-fine. It’s… it’s… it’s...” Madoka started to sob again. She couldn’t form words, it was as if her tongue had gone numb. Her jaw felt weak.

 _The fiery explosion._

 _A blazing sword barely blocked._

 _Sayaka’s burnt body._

Sayaka held Madoka’s head beneath her chin. “Don’t worry. I’m here. We’re _all_ here.”

Eventually, Madoka managed to catch her breath. “I… I… can’t...”

“You can!” Sayaka said. “ _We_ can! We’ll win! We’ll get everyone back!”

Crystal Clarity appeared in Madoka’s hands. She let the Keyblade fall to the ground with a clatter. “Ramuh said that the Heartless would always be after me. S-so… even if Mama, and Papa, and Tatsuya come back, they’ll still be in danger. W-will… will I have to leave them?”

“I… uh… I… don’t know...” Sayaka paused, her voice trembling slightly. She then hugged Madoka tighter, and spoke more forcefully. “We’ll just have to keep moving forwards. Besides, Ramuh said that Yen Sid is a former Keyblade Master, if anyone can figure this out, it’s him!”

“R-right.” Madoka took a deep breath.

“Are you okay to stand?” Sayaka asked.

“Yeah. Thanks.” Madoka said, as Sayaka helped her up. She picked up the Keyblade as well.

“Then let’s get going, the others are waiting.”

[As she](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRF_2U5Tt3Q) stepped out of the restroom, Mami turned to her, and gasped, placing her hands over her mouth. Nagisa started staring as well. Kyoko paused, scowled, and then turned away. At first, she though it was because she had been obviously crying, but then she remembered the scars.

“Madoka...”

“It’s fine. It is what it is.” She said. “Do you have the tickets?”

“Yeah… about that… there were some… complications.”

“What kind of complications?”

“The currency kind.” Kyoko huffed.

“What do you mean?”

“Well… I went to counter to request 5 tickets. I went to pay, but apparently, they’ve never even heard of Yen. So… we need to somehow get 4500 Munny.”

“Alien currencies.” Nagisa said. “Not something you usually think about...”

“So were stuck here?” Sayaka asked.

As Madoka dismissed her Keyblade, she saw a group of people run out of the station.

“Maybe we can sneak aboard.” Kyoko said.

“What? No! We’re not going to stowaway.”

“Why? It’s not hard. I do it all the time!”

“I… no comment.”

The girls exited the train station.

“So what now?” Sayaka asked.

“I could-” Kyoko started.

“We are _not_ stealing anything.” Mami interrupted.

“...I wasn’t gonna say that.”

“You definitely were.” Nagisa said.

“Well who asked you?” Kyoko retorted.

“Well, we do still have to find a way to somehow get 4500 Munny.”

“Maybe find some sort of quick job or something?” Madoka suggested.

“Nah, it’s unreliable and we’re pressed for time. I have a better solution!” Kyoko said.

“I said we’re not stealing anything.”

“I never said anything about stealing. It’ll be totally earned!"

"And how?"

"Simple! We have Mami get naked!”

“W-what? No!” Mami’s face turned a bright pink.

“Really?” Sayaka said. “Do you always have to go there? What's gotten into you?”

Kyoko leaned back. “Pfft… like you haven’t been thinkin’ it? We put on a show! It'll certainly draw a crowd! We-”

“Hey you!”

Everyone turned to see a group of people approaching them, two boys and a girl. The one in front had blonde hair, and he was flanked a rather portly boy, and a girl with brown hair.

“Who are you guys?”

“I’m Hayner. This is Pence and Olette.” Said the boy in the lead. “We… uh... couldn’t help but overhear your predicament.”

Kyoko grinned and leaned forwards. “So you want to see Mami’s-”

Mami held up her hand, silencing Kyoko. “What do you mean by ‘predicament’?”

“You’re short on Munny that you need for train tickets, right?” Pence asked.

“We don’t have much Munny to spare ourselves, but we do have a solution that doesn’t involve… whatever it is you were going to do.”

“Like what?” Sayaka asked.

“Have any of you heard of _Struggle_?”

* * *

  
The city was on fire. Screams echoed everywhere as buildings collapsed. She was reminded of what had happened to her own World and it was not a comfortable feeling.

Had it been peaceful, the city might have looked beautiful, with stunning authentic architecture and impressive gardens. Now, however, it was in the process of a disaster. Heartless ran amok, with the civilians of the town fleeing for their lives.

Homura took stock of the options she had for herself. Apparently, outside her own World, she was significantly weaker, much to her frustration. Her ability to shape reality was lost. However, she appeared to have her shield back, though its powers over time were changed. She still had her bow as well, which was confusing in itself. But that wasn’t a concern right now. Had Madoka really been brought to this place?

* * *

_Earlier..._

“Where is Madoka now then?”

Xehanort returned to looking at the sky. Whatever he had done was fading, and the storm clouds were reasserting themselves. He appeared frustrated again. “I cannot say for sure. There are too many variables at play. An Esper is called by a summoner. Maleficent may be responsible for that.”

“But I saw Madoka summon Ramuh. There was some sort of magical circle she created.”

“Maleficent is capable of ensorcelling others to do her bidding. A young man I like to think of as my pupil suffered this fate, and was made to use his powers to steal the Heart of another Princess for her against his will. Even if Maleficent was not directly responsible for Ramuh’s intervention, Espers are fickle creatures, and Madoka may not be able to keep control over such a being. It wouldn’t be anywhere near the first time an Esper has killed a novice summoner in a fit of rage.”

“Killed?” It was as if ice was injected directly into her veins.

“If he somehow intends to ‘help’ her, there is a likely place he might send her, a world known for its legendary warriors who vanquish monsters. Other Key-bearers have come through there as well. It is also coincidentally, where Maleficent is likely to head next. And, if the worst has come to pass, we would be able to learn the truth of Madoka’s fate as well, and then move from there. I can send you there if you wish.”

"What about this World. What will happen to it?"

"Each World has a Keyhole, a portal leading to its Heart. It is possible for a Keyblade to seal this portal, preventing access, thus preventing the Heartless from consuming the Heart and destroying the World." Xehanort gestured to his Keyblade. "I have ensured this World's Keyhole is secure."

Xehanort gestured, and a mass of writhing shadows appeared, forming into a vortex.

“This will take you to the World known as Olympus, where you can begin your search. Be wary however, other Worlds may be dangerous. Also, our enemies may be everywhere! Never let on that you are associated with me, for both my well-being, and your own.”

* * *

She had her mission. First, seek Madoka out in this world. Failing that, gain information from Maleficent, as she was most definitely here as well. And lastly, in the worst-case scenario, Hades was the God of the Dead. Should Madoka be dead, he would be able to tell her for certain.

But she really hoped it didn’t come to that. She leaped out over the city, running along rooftops, keeping an eye out for anything that could lead to Madoka, though as she did so, questions ran through her mind.

This was the city of Thebes in Greece. Thebes existed as well in her own world, though more modern of course. This was also the case with the gods, as she thought about Hades. These gods had been worshiped once in her own world. Were they the same gods? Were there versions of these gods on her own world? Were ancient people aware of other worlds like this? Was it all some really bizarre coincidence? Were there worlds containing figures from other religions and mythologies? And speaking of worlds…

Xehanort had called this world Olympus, and she could see what she assumed was the titular mountain off in the distance. But… far out did everything go? Just this city and the mountain? The entire Hellenistic world? The entire planet of Earth circa whatever year BCE? The solar system, the galaxy? Surprisingly, it was all so very _fascinating_. She wanted to know more. There were a lot of questions like... was that screaming? Was that screaming getting closer?

Then, before she could react, something heavy crashed into her in midair, slamming her into the ground and knocking the breath out of her. Her vision blurred, and everything felt dizzy. She then heard a voice.

“Gawrsh, Sora, are you okay?”

* * *

* * *

_Thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!_

_~Dragonexx_


	14. Challenges

_At long last, the time had come_

 _The planets were edging into perfect alignment…_

 _And the plan Hades had devised 18 years ago was about to reach fruition_

 _The Fates had predicted this very future_

 _The day he would seize control over Olympus and rule over all the cosmos_

 _Hades’ previous attempts using Terra, Cloud, and Auron to advances his plans for conquest had failed_

 _The hour was not yet right_

 _But now, the planets were aligned, and nothing could possibly go wrong_

 _A wave of darkness lanced down from their celestial rank and one by one, Hades freed the Titans_

 _some of them, the same monstrosities Sora and his friends had bested before_

 _With both the Titans and his longing for revenge against Zeus reinvigorated, Hades began his attack on Olympus…_

  


* * *

  
Homura immediately sprung into action, tossing off her assailants and rolling to her feet. As she aimed her bow at them, she noted their strange appearance.

One was a boy who looked to be around her physical age. His clothing looked more modern and he had spiky hair and blue eyes. The other was an _anthropomorphic dog_? She wasn’t that well versed on classical mythology, but she didn’t recall anything like that. Of course that made it all the more dangerous.

“Who are you?” Homura demanded.

The boy spoke up. “I’m Sora...”

He looked towards the dog, who looked back at him, confused. Like they were expecting something.

“Where’s Donald?”

There was a sudden squawking sound from above. Homura whipped around, to see some sort of duck wearing clothes, it’s mantle caught on the teeth of a lion statue. “Sora, Goofy, get me down!”

“Don’t worry Donald! We’re on it!” Sora shouted. Ignoring Homura, he climbed up on the statue, and started trying to pull “Donald” from it. “Goofy” rushed over as well, helping to free the duck.

She wondered if she was being paranoid. They were likely just more civilians that had fallen from one of the taller buildings.

“Are you so sure?” Said a familiar voice behind her. Homura stiffened, and slowly turned to see The Devil approaching her. “Look at them, they completely stand out. Those clothes are completely outlandish and unfitting. And those names! Those are not Greek names. Xehanort said that our enemies could be anywhere!”

“They don’t seem that threatening.” Said another voice. Akemi Homura approached.

“Kyubey didn’t seem threatening at first, and look what happened! Sayaka didn’t seem like a threat at first either! Have you really learned nothing?! Though what else can you expect...”

Akemi’s eyes widened at those words, and it looked like she was again on the verge of tears. “N-no. Are we really going to attack some random people? They haven’t done anything to us! This is paranoia!”

“He smashed us into the ground. Maybe accidental. Maybe not. Always helps to be sure.” The Devil said as she shoved Akemi away. "Take the shot."

Homura focused on the three of them. Donald was still stuck, and now apparently Sora had somehow gotten _himself_ stuck inside the lion’s mouth as well, and Goofy was now trying to free them both.

Homura took aim at Sora, the burning arrow locking on to his head. They weren’t even paying attention. It’d be easy. When Sora went down, the others would be shocked and confused, making it simple to…

Then she heard the sound. That horrid watery sound that heralded the arrival of the Heartless. They appeared all around her, writhing bug shadows, fiery creatures, massively bloated forms. and centaurs wielding spears.

[Homura](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPTfoCyYfkA&t=16s) rolled to the side, as one of the centaurs thrust at her, and retaliated with an arrow, exploding against the Heartless’ flank. It stumbled to the side, but wasn’t defeated yet. It attempted to counter with another thrust, forcing Homura to dodge again, and then narrowly avoid a fireball from another Heartless.

As she stepped back, she focused on her shield. The gears in the timepiece began to move and her attention was drawn to the centaur once more. In her vision, she saw something like a clock superimposed over the Heartless, and the minute and second hands began to slow down. " _Slow._ " The word came to her mind and became voice as she watched the movements of the Heartless become sluggish, as if a movie had entered slow motion. Now, it was easy. A single shot from her bow struck the Heartless in the head, destroying it.

Her powers had changed. Again.

She was forced to fall back as several fiery heartless came charging towards her. She was about to open fire, when instead, a ball of highly pressurized water sailed past her to explode against the Heartless. There was no other word for it, they were extinguished.

Homura turned to see Sora leaping forwards, and froze as she saw what he was holding. _A Keyblade!_ Unlike Madoka’s or Xehanorts, his was simpler in design, its teeth and shaft were silver, with a blue band around the base. The hilt was golden, with a black grip, and a simple steel chain ending in a mouse shaped symbol.

Sora brought the weapon down one of the Heartless, destroying it completely. A fat Heartless glowed red and charged at him, only for him to meet it head on, standing his ground. The Heartless’ charge was halted and it bounced back, only to be hit by the Keyblade like it was a golf ball and sent flying into the air and then shot by a fireball emerging from the tip of Sora’s Keyblade and destroyed.

Homura was so shocked, she didn’t notice that a Heartless had shot a fireball towards her as well, until it was too late. She hastily held up her arms, awaiting more pain, only to instead hear an impact. She opened her eyes to see Goofy standing in front of her, holding a shield.

“Are you okay?”

Homura said nothing, instead looking past him to the battle ahead. Donald proved to be just as capable as the others, wielding some sort of magic staff. From the tip he fired a shard of ice that on impact exploded releasing a wave of frost and cold that entombed several Heartless, where they were promptly destroyed by Sora. In short order, the trio’s teamwork defeated the Heartless.

“Whew!” Sora wiped his brow. “They’re still everywhere!”

“Is-” Homura stood up. “Is that a Keyblade?”

“Oh! Right! You’re here!” Sora said. “And yeah, this is a Keyblade. How did you know about that though? I thought it had been a long time since other Key-bearers had been to this Wor-”

Immediately Donald leaped on Sora, covering his mouth. “Order!”

“Oh right!” Sora said.

“You’re from another World?” Homura asked.

“What? No! That’s crazy! Where would you hear something like that?” Sora laughed nervously while Donald and Goofy facepalmed. “There’s no such thing as...”

“I’m from another World as well.” Homura said.

The trio gasped. “Really! I didn’t think there were that many other people who did that! Why are you here though?”

“I’m looking for someone. Her name is Madoka Kaname. She’s about my age. She has pink hair and eyes. She’s a...” Homura had been about to tell them about her Keyblade, but stopped. She wasn’t sure if she should trust him with that information. “...person very dear to me.”

Sora pondered. “No, I haven’t seen anyone like that...”

“Oh.”

“Hey, don’t worry! It’s a big city! I’m sure we’ll find her somewhere!”

“We’ll?” Homura said.

“Of course. Can’t just leave you hanging like that! Besides, there’s someone I’m looking for here too. Why not work together? Now…” He paused, looking confused. “What was your name again?”

“I never told you. It’s Homura Akemi.”

Sora smiled. “Well Homura, come with us!”

* * *

  
Struggle turned out to be something completely different from what Madoka expected. Not that she was entirely sure what she _had_ expected, but she was still surprised.

As it turned out, it involved attaching numerous orbs to your body with velcro. The two combatants would then strike at each other with foam bats in an attempt to knock their opponents orbs off. If one lost all their orbs to their opponent, or had fewer than their opponent when time ran out, or exited the ring, then they lost. And it was all for a grand prize of 50,000 munny. Madoka wasn't that interested in playing. She had never been all that good at sports back home, she was too clumsy. Nobody had wanted her for their team. But she was going to have to put that aside. If all of them entered, they'd have a greater chance of obtaining the grand prize.

The selection of bats was also a factor, choosing between three different shapes. One looked like a simple club, another was a long wand, while a third was more sword like with a guarded hilt. Nagisa and Madoka gravitated to the wands, while Mami and Sayaka chose the swords. Kyoko picked the club. And with that, the tournament began.

As it turned out the first match involved Kyoko, and she was facing off against a local. Somebody named Seifer. The others took their seats in the stands, to watch the match play out.

"Haven't seen you around here before?" Seifer said.

"What, that a problem?" Kyoko retorted.

"If you're here to cause trouble, it is, loser. I lead the Twilight Town Disciplinary Committee."

Kyoko snorted. "What, are you some sorta wannabe cop? Like those pretentious student council types, thinkin' your really qualified, when everyone just likes your pretty face."

"What?!"

"Not like you that goin' for ya' though. So who'd ya' bribe?" She shrugged.

"Why you-!"

"[AND STRUGGLE!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69bfdjnUPSs)"

Kyoko was fast, taking advantage of Seifer's distraction to land several quick strikes, knocking loose orbs which she quickly gathered and reattached to herself. Seifer attempted to counter attack, only for her to dodge out of the way and land another series of strikes, knocking loose even more orbs. The crowd cheered.

"And that's it? Geez, ya' really are all just talk, aint'cha?"

Seifer recovered his guard and jumped back, clear surprise and frustration showing on his face. His expression returned to calmness as he deflected Kyoko's next series of attacks and then to Madoka's surprise, leaped high up into the air. It was apparently to Kyoko's surprise as well, because she didn't even react as Seifer came streaking towards her from the air, with a direct hit, knocking off many of her own orbs.

After this impact, there was a scramble as both combatants attempted to gather the fallen orbs. Kyoko was still faster, and when time was called, she was the victor.

The crowd cheered again. Seifer for his part didn't look too upset. He shrugged and walked off with his friends. Madoka reflected on the fight as the next bout was getting set up. The move Seifer pulled was certainly amazing and superhuman, but judging from the reactions of people appeared to be the norm.

Speaking of that, the next fight was between Nagisa, and somebody called Vivi. At first, Madoka had thought he was a Heartless, but apparently, that was just how he looked. Their fight was was even more bizarre and spectacular than the previous. Both of them were all over the place, with Nagisa wildly running about, while Vivi hopped around the arena like a madman, spinning in the air, and even doing odd things like increasing the size of his bat.

In the end, Nagisa won out, managing to trip Vivi as he went for an attack and sending him sprawling out of the arena.

"Well that was impressive." Madoka said after the match.

"This town looked kinda normal at first, but this _is_ a different world after all." Nagisa commented as Mami walked onto the stage. "That was really fun however!"

"If nothing else, it will make for a good training opportunity." Mami observed.

"Pfft. You call this training?" Kyoko said. "Didn't even break a sweat with that wannabe cop."

"You _say_ that." Sayaka countered. "Looks like you were pretty shocked by that move of his."

"Oh yeah? Why don't I shock you!"

Mami sighed. "At least save it for the arena."

"Speaking of which, you're match is up next!"

Mami's opponent turned out to be a man somewhat older than the rest of the combatants, and also had several scars. There were numerous women in the audience cheering and swooning for Setzer. And then he opened the match by flirting with Mami, which she simply rolled her eyes at. At first, Madoka had thought him to be mostly talk, but he was surprisingly skilled. His speed was amazing, and Mami was unable to keep up, losing. The match was over fairly quickly, and thus, it was Madoka and Sayaka's turn.

Madoka nervously stepped onto the stage, with Sayaka onto the other side. She gripped her bat, and noted that it felt fairly awkward in her grip. So unlike Crystal Clarity. Maybe it was some property of the Keyblade that made it so intuitive to wield, because this felt just like playing baseball back in gym class. The bat always felt the wrong size for her hands, too heavy, too off balance.

What did that mean though? Did everything come from the Keyblade? Was she really still just a clumsy, useless girl witho-

"Hey, all eyes are on us! Smile!" Sayaka said.

"W-what?"

"C'mon. We're the big heroes who will save the world! There's no reason to look so glum." Sayaka said with a big grin. She pointed to the cheering crowd. "Everythings gonna be fine! See?"

"But..."

"I mean, when we get everyone back, are you going to greet your family with a frown like that? You kick ass! You'll have saved the world! Think of how proud they'd be of that!"

At Sayaka's words, Madoka thought back to her family. She had always been in awe of her mother, and yet there was the feeling that she'd never live up to how amazing Junko Kaname was. But something like this? Madoka smiled.

"Thanks..."

"AND STRUGGLE!"

* * *

The match ended in Sayaka's victory, though for once, Madoka didn't feel at all bad about losing at sports. Instead, she felt a sort of satisfied exhaustion as she went back to the stands, where the others were waiting.

Mami and Nagisa looked fairly relaxed, though Kyoko scowled again, before looking away. What was she upset about?

"That was a good match!" Nagisa cheered. "Right?"

"Yeah... sure whatever." Kyoko said.

"It looks like we'll be up next."

Kyoko sighed. "Well, let's get this over with."

"What's wrong?" Sayaka asked.

"Nothing. I'm fine." Kyoko muttered. She sauntered into the arena, with Nagisa entering from the other side.

The next two matches passed quickly. Despite her earnestness, it was clear that Nagisa stood no change against Kyoko and she was quickly rung out. The same, surprisingly happened with Sayaka and Setzer, after he misstepped, and she tripped him, leaving the final bout to Sayaka and Kyoko.

Sayaka smiled as she dropped into a fighting stance. “And now it comes down to us! Fated rivals at the climax of the tournament! Their honor on the line! Who will come out on top!"

Kyoko simply frowned. “What? Is this all a game to you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Of course… you don’t understand. What else should I expect?”

“What?”

“LET’S STRUGGLE!” The announcers voice rang throughout the sandlot.

Kyoko didn’t waste a second, immediately dashing forwards and striking Sayaka in the face. She stumbled back, guarding too late to prevent another hit to her side. When she tried to block down there, Kyoko thrust forwards, jabbing her right in the solar plexus. Sayaka gasped in pain and doubled over as she attempted to back away. She noticed that a few orbs had been knocked loose, but Kyoko was ignoring them, and instead walking towards Sayaka.

“Really? That’s it?” Kyoko said.

“What are you talking about?” Sayaka asked. She then barely managed to block a blow from Kyoko. Her bat was knocked out of her hands. She dove towards it. Kyoko made no attempt to stop her as she recovered it.

“Figures. Shouldn't be surprised.” Kyoko said.

“What do-”

What happened next was a blur of motion and impact. When Sayaka had control of her senses again, she found that she had been knocked outside the arena, most of her orbs had been detached.

“And the winner is… Kyoko Sakura!” There was a round of applause and cheering.

Kyoko shrugged and removed her gear as the announcer rushed over to her with the title belt and a pouch of the prize money. Kyoko took them, and then nonchalantly tossed them towards Sayaka, before taking off, to the confusion of both the crowd and her companions.

“What was that about?” Sayaka exclaimed, as Madoka and Nagisa helped her up.

“I’m going to have a word with her.” Mami said, taking off after her.

* * *

Mami managed to catch up with Kyoko. Fortunately, she hadn’t gone too far away.

“Kyoko! What the heck was that?!”

“Winning the tournament.” Kyoko said. She didn’t turn around, and instead kept walking away. “That was the objective, wasn’t it? Now we have money for the train.”

“It’s more than that, I know.”

“What the _hell_ do you know?! What the hell does some set-for-life rich heiress know?!” Kyoko rounded on her.

Mami winced, but pressed forward. “I _know_ when somethings bothering you! I _know_ that we have a huge burden placed on our shoulders. I _know_ arguing like this only makes it harder to bear. Now please tell me. What's wrong?”

Kyoko paused. She clenched her fists. “Why did it have to be her?”

“What?”

“Why did it have to be her? Why did the Keyblade have to choose some stupid, spoiled, sheltered, milquetoast, little girl?”

“Kyoko...”

“This dumb girl becomes the chosen one, to save the world from darkness, and then she gets to have her family back! Like nothing ever fuckin’ happened.”

Realization struck Mami. Her joking. An effort to cope. “ _That’s_ what this is about.”

“ _Sayaka too_! Her family were turned into Heartless as well. She gets to have them back as well, as if none of this crap even happened. But not there rest of us! You know, when Ramuh talked about restoring those who were lost, I thought, for a while, that I might be able to see them again. I could talk to my mom and dad. I could hug Momo. But then at the train station, I remembered. I tried to put it out of my mind. Make some jokes, play along. But then, I overheard what Madoka and Sayaka were saying to each other at the tournament, and it all came crashing back." Kyoko paused and clenched her fists while taking a deep breath. "My dad went crazy and killed my mom and my sister. He tried to kill me, and when he failed, he killed himself. Your parents died in a car crash due to some dumbass drunk driver. Nagisa’s mom had cancer and her dad walked out on her. They didn’t turn into Heartless, they’re just fuckin’ dead in the ground. Well, I guess Nagisa’s dad isn’t. But she wouldn’t want to see that shitstain again anyways. And yet Madoka’s the one who gets to see her smiling family again!”

“Kyoko, it’s not fair to blame-”

“ _Fuck you!_ You think I don’t know that?! I do! She didn’t ask for any of this shit. None of us did. She saw family die in front of her. Just like I did. Just like you did. Just like Nagisa did. I know it ain't fair! The world ain’t fair! _I fucking know that!_ But… I-I can’t help it. I just look at her. Rich, loving family, happy life… and… and…” Kyoko’s voice began to crack. "And she gets to just... just... undo everything that happened and g-get all t-that back. While I..."

“Kyoko...”

Kyoko suddenly cried out and punched a wall so hard she made a crack in the concrete. She was gritting her teeth, and a knot formed in Mami’s stomach as she saw Kyoko’s knuckles bleeding.

“No. No more tears.”

“It’s okay. We’ve been through a lot.”

“I don’t need your pity.”

“I’m not pitying you. It’s been a crazy day. If you need to let it out-”

They both paused as they heard the sound of shuffling feet behind them. They both turned and saw Madoka rounding the corner. Kyoko’s eyes widened. She looked like she was about to say something, but instead turned around.

“Where are you going?”

“For a walk. Need some time to myself. I’ll meet up with you later.” Kyoko leaped up on top of one of the buildings and took off.

“No! Kyoko, wait!” But she was already gone. She turned back to Madoka.

“I… got worried. So I followed. And then I heard your argument.”

Mami placed her hands on Madoka’s shoulders. “You don’t need to feel bad. Kyoko-”

“No!” Madoka removed Mami’s hands. “I was selfish! I wasn’t thinking about you guys!”

“Madoka. Don’t do this to yourself. It's not your fault. I don’t blame you. I’m sure Kyoko doesn’t really blame you as well. I mean it.” Mami hoped she meant it. “She needs some space. I say we let her have it. We all need some time to relax.”

“Like how?”

Mami thought back to the Munny they had been given. Her stomach growled. “Howabout dinner?”

* * *

_So are there centaur like creatures in chinese mythology that I'm not aware of? If not, then why were they in the Land of Dragons and not Olympus Colosseum?_

 _Again, thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!_

_~Dragonexx_


	15. A Flower Blooms in the Netherworld

It proved to be somewhat slow going through the city. Rubble and raining fire aside, the Heartless were omnipresent. Homura lamented that she was so weakened away from Mitakihara, else she could have easily eliminated these Heartless. As it stood, she was forced to ally herself with these strangers.  
  
And Madoka was nowhere to be seen.  
  
Every time there was an explosion, or the ground shook, or a building collapsed, more knots formed in her stomach, and her breathing hastened. She was so weak now, and this city was falling apart. Madoka was in peril and she was failing her!  
  
Why had she been so slow to respond? It had started with the dream, but she had dismissed it to go play dress-up in a castle. Then there had been the attack on her island. She could have ended that fight in a second but she instead felt the need to _toy_ with the invaders. Then she didn’t stick around after she checked on Madoka and missed everything! By the time she got back on track, it had been too late. And when the problem was right in front of her, instead of keeping Madoka close, she had warped her away so she could go throw a tantrum. What the hell was she even doing here?  
  
“ _You’ve got that right.”_ Homura heard the voice of Homulilly. _“Did you really think you could protect her? Homura, the sad joke of a girl thought she could protect somebody. You failed, like you always do. You really should have ended it that day. Madoka was worse off the moment you entered her life.”_  
  
She felt a hand on her shoulder, and turned to face Homulilly. Instead, she was surprised to see Sora.  
  
“What is it?”  
  
“Homura? I know it looks bad, but you can’t lose hope. I _know_ you’ll find her.”  
  
“How? You don’t even know me.”  
  
“Maybe not, but I understand what you’re feeling. A lot. I’ve lost friends too, and spent so much time searching for them. It was hard, and I almost gave up hope several times. But in the end, we’ve been reunited. Whatever happens, you have to see this through. And for what it’s worth, I believe you’ll find each other in the end.”  
  
“Yeah Homura! Madoka’s countin’ on ya’!” Goofy said.  
  
The words felt… strange. Unreal. She wasn’t sure what to think. Fortunately, she was interrupted by a female sounding scream.  
  
“ _Help!_ ”  
  
“Madoka?!” The scream was coming from a burning building nearby. She could see Heartless pouring into the place. Homura immediately rushed towards the building, firing a shot that blasted the shadows gathering at the entrance.  
  
As she entered, she paused, disappointed. The cry had come from a family. A father, mother, and daughter were surrounded by Heartless, cowering behind an overturned couch. She looked around the room, but it was obvious Madoka wasn’t here. She sighed.  
  
“What are you just standing there for?” She heard Sora behind her. She turned, and saw a jet of water shoot forwards as if from a fire hose and slam a Heartless into a wall, while simultaneously extinguishing several fires.  
  
The Heartless immediately turned to Sora as he leaped into action. “I’ll draw their attention, you keep those people out of harms way!”  
  
“Y-yes.” Homura said. All confusion exited her mind. This was a fight. She knew that. Everything else could be shoved aside, at least for the moment. She immediately shot an arrow at the Heartless nearest to the civilians destroying it, and then leaped forward, kicking away the next one to approach and then shooting it.  
  
A calm rhythm fell over her. Use _slow_ on the Heartless that drew too close, while picking off the farther targets. The Heartless were barely more than animals, much like many familiars tended to be. Their tactics were simple, repetitive.  
  
Sora, for his part, practically flew across the battlefield. She noticed a similar aura to Madoka’s as he moved rapidly, though his was blue. His fighting style also differed from Madoka’s as he didn’t rely on this power as much as her. Instead, he mixed magical attacks in with Keyblade swings, even combining the two. He would dash forwards, cutting his way into the middle of a crowd of Heartless, before causing fireballs to spin around him, engulfing all those too slow to get out of the way. Then, with them scattered, he directed the flames onto his keyblade, and then hurled it, a spinning disk of fiery death.  
  
While the Keyblade was separated from Sora, Goofy leaped behind him, intercepting attacks to Sora’s back. He then struck, battering the Heartless into a wall, where a bolt of lightning from Donald’s staff eliminated them.  
  
Then, as the Keyblade returned to Sora, Goofy tossed his shield towards him, which Sora struck like it was a baseball, sending it bouncing around through another crowd of Heartless like this was some sort of pinball machine. When it reached the center, Donald held up his staff and shouted “ _Aero_!”  
  
A miniature tornado formed, sucking the Heartless into it, and mercilessly battering them with both the winds and Goofy’s shield. Once the Heartless were defeated, a gesture from Donald’s staff blew Goofy’s shield back into his hands. The trio simply nodded to each other.  
  
They were a well-oiled machine. Watching them fight like that, Homura was reminded of her early days, fighting alongside Mami and Madoka. Or even better when _all five of them_ were facing the Nightmares and…  
  
Homura abruptly ended that line of thought. She wasn’t part of a team. She never truly had been. It was a lie. It always was. Trust and cooperation were always a lie. A veneer over selfishness. She was only with them so she could find Madoka. They were looking for someone as well. They wanted something from her. She wanted something from them. An alliance of convenience. A transaction. Nothing more.  
  
There was a shuffling sound behind her. Homura jolted, only to remember the family she was protecting. They were starting to make their way to the exit, escorted by Sora. These must have been the people Sora was looking for.  
  
She walked of the house after them, to hear Sora speaking.  
  
“There’s a safe area in town square that the guards are setting up. Be careful on your way there.”  
  
“Alright!” The father said. “Thank you. C’mon, lets get going.”  
  
The daughter however, looked over at Homura. She then ran over to the front of her house where a flowerpot had been knocked over. She picked something out of it and rushed over to Homura, a big smile on her face. She handed her a blue flower, a hyacinth.  
  
“I don’t have much left, but this is thanks for saving me! You were amazing! I hope I can be brave like you some day!”  
  
_Brave like me?_  
  
Homura said nothing as she took the flower, simply staring blankly at it. The family took off around a corner.  
  
Eventually, she placed the flower in her time-shield and turned to Sora, Donald and Goofy. They were looking out over a balcony, surveying the city. She looked back to where the family had been, and then back to them.  
  
“Where is he?” Goofy asked.  
  
“Dunno, it’s a big city.” Sora replied.  
  
“Why did you let them go like that?” Homura asked.  
  
“What do you mean?”  
  
“Weren’t they the ones you were searching for?” She asked.  
  
“No?”  
  
“But then...” Homura asked. “Why go to all this trouble to rescue them?”  
  
“They were in danger. Why else?” Sora answered with a grin. “That’s what heroes do! Like Herc!”  
  
“And us to now!” Goofy said. "We ain't junior heroes no more."  
  
“Herc?”  
  
“Hercules.” Donald clarified.  
  
“Yeah, he’s the one I’m looking for. Herc once lost his strength, but then he gained it back. _I_ used to be a lot stronger than I am now, but some thing happened to me, and I’m weaker. I was hoping Herc could help me with that. There are a lot of people who are depending on me, and I don’t want them to suffer. But, now… ” Sora suddenly looked glum. “Now, I don’t know if I can still do it like I am.”  
  
Homura was about to reply, when she heard a sudden laughter behind her.  
  
“Aww… now if that ain’t music to my ears.” A male voice said.  
  
She turned to see a dark portal. Out of the vortex emerged a strange creature. It looked like an anthropomorphic fat cat wearing a weird looking jumpsuit. He kind of resembled Donald and Goofy.  
  
“Pete!”  
  
“ _Well, if it isn’t Sora and the Kings pawns. And extras._ ” Said another voice. This one female. It echoed, and made Homura’s skin crawl. Out of the portal stepped a demonic looking woman. She had no hair, instead having black scales and horns that framed her sickly green face. Her eyes were yellow, with slit pupils. She wore a flowing black robe and carried a staff with a green gemstone at the tip.  
  
Sora immediately dropped into a fighting stance, as did Donald and Goofy.  
  
“Maleficent! Pete! Are you the reason the Heartless are here?”  
  
_This_ was Maleficent? When Xehanort had called her an evil fairy, this wasn’t what she had pictured in her head, though she did still look suitably sinister.  
  
“ _Certainly not!_ ” Maleficent dismissed.  
  
Pete looked over Sora and sneered. “Not sure about the other punks but the key kid is definitely weaker now! I say we finish him off while we can!”  
  
Maleficent rolled her eyes. “ _Waste no time with the boy, he is inconsequential. We have a far more pressing matter to attend to._ ”  
  
Pete looked confused for a second, before confidently crossing his arms. “Oh! We gots ta' find that black box!”  
  
“ _Be silent you fool!_ ” Maleficent snapped and Pete flinched. “ _As for you all. We shall meet again… when I have time for such trifles.”_  
  
She turned to leave, only to be interrupted.  
  
“Maleficent! Answer me!” Homura said. “What you you know of Madoka!”  
  
“ _You dare to make demands of me, girl?_ ” Maleficent said, sounding incredulous at the thought. She then grinned. “ _Though, now that you mention it. I encountered a Madoka Kaname not too long ago. A foolhardy, insubordinate girl. She got what she deserved._ ”  
  
“Yeah!” Pete laughed. “Last I saw that brat was about to be torn apart by Heartless! Serves her right!”  
  
He didn’t laugh for long, as an arrow of purple flame hit him head on, sending him flying into a wall hard enough to crack it. He slid to the ground with a groan of pain.  
  
“ ** _You hurt Madoka! Where is she?! What have you done with her?!_** ” Her voice resonated as she aimed another shot at Maleficent. The evil fairy gestured lazily with her staff, and the purple flames were intercepted by green ones.  
  
“ _Watch yourself child. You know not who you are dealing with._ ”  
  
Homura didn’t care. Her vision was filling with red. She had hurt Madoka. She would _die_ for that. She gave an inhuman yell. A glowing blue shimmering arm extended from Homura’s body, reaching for Maleficent. She responded by slamming the base of her staff against the ground. A mass of thorny vines and branches emerged from the earth and intercepted the hand. They then jerked and pulled the hand, and Homura along with it.  
  
She was slammed into the guard over the balcony. Homura ignored the pain from the impact, and forced herself up, bow pointed at Maleficent. However, she was already prepared, her staff pointed at Homura.  
  
“ _Lightning strike at my behest! Devastate this insolent pest!”_  
  
A blindingly bright flash of lightning erupted from the tip of Maleficent’s staff, blasting Homura through the guard and out over the city. She was sent flying, to come crashing through the window of a building, just in time for a quake to cause the structure to collapse.

* * *

“ _Le Grand Bistrot._ Sounds fancy!” Sayaka said.  
  
“Looks fancy.” Madoka observed.  
  
“Tastes fancy too. And I’m not just saying that because we did some part time work there.” Pence said.  
  
“I dunno.” Mami said. “It looks pricey.”  
  
“Hey, you have all that prize money. Should be easy.” Hayner said.  
  
“Yeah… it’s just...” Mami said.  
  
“What? What’s wrong?”  
  
“Well, you gave up your place in the tournament for us.” Mami said. “We only really need money for the train. It doesn’t feel right to just spend it frivolously like this. I’d rather give you the extra.”  
  
“Hey, don’t worry about it. You earned it. There’s always next time.” Hayner said. “Besides, I’d feel worse if I’d just left you guys stranded.”  
  
“I guess…”  
  
“He said it was fine. Why deny their generosity?” Nagisa added.  
  
“If you really feel you need to pay us back, then you can treat us to dinner! Besides, you all look like you really need it!” Olette suggested.  
  
Madoka’s stomach growled. She recalled that the only thing she had eaten was a small sandwich in the morning. All that fighting had worked up an appetite.  
  
“Yeah! C’mon Mami!”  
  
Mami smiled gently. “Well, I suppose it can’t be helped.”  
  
Everyone cheered. They sat down at a table outside the restaurant, and a waitress came over with menus.  
  
Madoka looked it over, and was amazed and how high class the menu items were. Her family was fairly well off and could have afforded things like this without trouble. However, they preferred to eat at home because her fathers cooking was incredible and healthier, only really eating out when convenience was necessary.  
  
Eventually, she made up her mind and ordered the crab bisque. Sayaka chose the bouillabaisse. Mami the stuffed quail and Nagisa the caprese salad. After Hayner, Pence, and Olette placed their orders, the group leaned back, finally relaxing, only to hear a voice.  
  
“Room for one more?” Kyoko was back. Madoka winced as she saw that she had bandages with red stains wrapped around part of her left hand.  
  
“Kyoko!” Mami said. “You’re back?!”  
  
“You must not know me as well as you think if you thought I was going to miss out on food.” She said. She looked over towards Madoka, and then awkwardly looked away before taking a seat. She ordered the filet mignon poêlé. “Besides, beats being chased by weird fans. Had enough of being asked to pose for pictures with a bunch of fat otaku.  
  
Kyoko turned to Hayner. “So. What made you want to help us in the first place? Are you in the business of going out of your way for complete strangers?”  
  
“Not really.” Hayner said. “To be honest, it was when we saw Madoka’s Keyblade. We overheard that you needed help and we could just ignore that. We’ve met some other Keyblade wielders before.”  
  
“You know about other Keyblade-wielders?” Mami asked.  
  
“Well, just a couple. Sora and Mickey. I don’t know the whole story about what’s going on with them, but it seems very important, so I wasn’t going to let another one get stuck.”  
  
“Right...” Kyoko looked back to Madoka, and when their eyes met, she awkwardly looked away again. She couldn’t let this keep going on.  
  
Madoka took a deep breath. “Kyoko? Can we talk?”  
  
“What?”  
  
“Uh… just… come with me?” Madoka stood up and gestured for Kyoko to follow.

* * *

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” Madoka bowed.  
  
Kyoko sighed. “It’s not your fault.”  
  
“But I wasn’t thinking about you! I was so happy that I could get Mama and Papa and Tatsuya and everyone back that I wasn’t thinking about your losses! You, or Mami, or Nagisa. I was ignoring all of you. I was being selfish and sp-”  
  
“No, you weren’t. You’re fine… You… You’re... Dammit! I’m not good at this stuff!” Kyoko said. Madoka had already been through her share of trauma, as the scar on her face demonstrated. She really didn’t want to add any more trouble on top of that. “Look. I miss my family, yeah. As do Nagisa and Mami. But that doesn’t mean we don’t want you or Sayaka to get yours back, if you can. I’d rather you did. It’s not fair, but the worlds not-”  
  
“I’m sorry!”  
  
“Again with the apologizing. Jeez! Grow a spine!” Kyoko shot back.  
  
“I’m…” Madoka trailed off.  
  
“Damn, I didn’t mean it like that.” She said, her eyes widening. Damn it all, why was this so hard? She scratched her head awkwardly, before tentatively placing her hand on Madoka’s shoulder. “Look. It’s been a hell of a day. Everybody’s high strung and stressed out. I don’t know how were going to save a World, but what I do know is that we can’t do it when were starving to death! We’ve been out long enough. The foods probably ready! Sound good?”  
  
Madoka laughed a bit, though it sounded a little forced. “Yeah. That sounds good.”

* * *

_So, this is the first time I've really tried writing something like this, dealing with loss (especially the unequal forms of loss in Kingdom Hearts). What does everyone think?  
  
__Again, thanks to__[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!  
_  
~Dragonexx


	16. A Scarlet Dream

[The bed was soft](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVa3ijlcZnw), but Madoka was softer next to her. Illuminated by the moonlight, Homura could see her eyes were closed, but there was a gentle smile on her face. Homura simply lay there, basking in her presence. Here, all her fears could be left behind, melting away.

“Hey Madoka, are you still awake?”  
  
“Yeah. Sleeping in the same bed is a bit embarrassing, huh?”  
  
“I can sleep on the floor.” Homura offered without hesitation.  
  
“No, this is nice.” Madoka snuggled up even tighter. “Plus, you’re so warm...”  
  
Homura wrapped an arm around her while Madoka giggled. “So are you, Madoka.”  
  
The two of them simply lay there, enjoying the moment. Eventually however, Homura’s curiosity got the better of her.  
  
“Hey, Madoka? Why did you invite me to spend the night?”  
  
“When you told me you lived alone, you seemed so… well… lonely.”  
  
“I… did?”  
  
“So I wanted to spend a lot more time with you.”  
  
“Madoka… um… thank you.” Homura replied.  
  
“You shouldn’t. I’m just happy seeing you happy.”  
  
“Me too.”  
  
“Can I sleep over at your place, next time?”  
  
“S-sure, but there’s not much there, if your okay with that.”  
  
“That’s not true.” Madoka leaned forwards, smiling. “You’re there.”  
  
“Madoka...” Homura’s heart swelled with emotion. She was at a loss for words. What did she say next? Thankfully, Madoka stepped in.  
  
“I’m kinda tired now.”  
  
“Me too. I think I’ll sleep well tonight. Good night Madoka.”  
  
“Good night Homura.” Madoka leaned forwards, resting on Homura’s chest, arms wrapped around her. She was quickly asleep, breathing softly.  
  
Homura, for her part, lay there, appreciating the moment. Madoka was at peace. This… was what it was all for. She could do this. She would save her. No matter how many timelines it would take. For moments like these. Where Madoka could be happy. As she lay back on the pillow, she looked back outside at the Moon.  
  
She saw a shadow began to fill it. That was odd, there was never a lunar eclipse at this time… Then Homura saw the stars begin to fade from the sky, one by one. The lights of Mitakihara were extinguished and everything outside became blackness.  
  
The room began to darken as well, everything vanishing from sight. She then felt herself sinking, falling into darkness. She looked around, and could see that Madoka was falling as well. Her eyes were closed, and she looked peaceful, but she was still falling, tumbling through the darkness. Homura dove after her, desperately trying to catch up.  
  
All around them, there was nothingness, just an empty black void and the wind whipping around them. The only light came from Madoka as she seemed to glow in the shadows.  
  
“Don’t worry Madoka! I’m coming!”  
  
She was getting closer now. Almost within reach. Homura held out her hands, attempting to reach her. As she approached, she desperately grabbed at her. Her hands, her legs, her hair, her shirt, anything to get a hold. Homura’s first few attempts were clumsy, Madoka slipping out of her grip. Finally, however, she managed to get a grip on Madoka’s hand, only for a sudden gust of wind to tear them apart.  
  
Homura stopped moving, trapped, while she watched the a red claw emerge from the gloom and impale Madoka upon it's talons. Homura screamed and screamed, but she was powerless to do anything. Her movements became stiff, painful. Her throat became raw, her eyes began to blur, but she couldn't reach Madoka. Blood flowed from Madoka's wounds, staining her clothes, her hair, her skin. Soon she was utterly soaked in her own blood. It dripped down the length of the claw.  
  
"No! Madoka!" Homura screamed. But it was pointless, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't reach her. And then the hand began to sink, dragging Madoka down into the darkness...

* * *

[Slowly](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_HOKs-1IKk&t=8s), Homura returned to consciousness. Everything was in pain. When she tried to move her hands felt slick. It was blood. Her blood. She was covered in it. She couldn’t feel her legs. One eye was swollen shut. Her hair was matted down with blood. Even breathing hurt. When she tried to pull herself out, her head exploded in agony, and she almost vomited as her sense of balance went haywire.  
  
Her vision was blurry, but she see that she was pinned beneath a large piece of rubble. It was also hot, and growing hotter. The building was on fire, and the blaze was steadily drawing closer to her.  
  
She heard footsteps, and then in her blurry vision saw bare feet standing before her.  
  
“H-help.” Homura said weakly.  
  
“Oh, but what would be the point?”  
  
Homura recognized that voice. She grimaced as she saw Homulilly kneel in front of her.  
  
“Madoka’s dead.”  
  
Homura’s body went cold. “No! She can’t be!”  
  
Homulilly leaned over, against the rocks pinning Homura down. She caressed Homura’s cheek, before running her bony hands across the wounds on her head, inflicting piercing agony upon Homura. Her vision splintered as she was helpless to do anything but whimper.  
  
“Why delude yourself? You never had a chance. You acknowledged it yourself. You couldn’t protect her forever. Someday it would all come crashing down. But you had to live in denial. Ignore your epiphany. And now she’s dead. You failed, like everything else in your worthless life. But what else can you expect?”  
  
“No!” Homura rasped as she stretched out a blood-stained hand and tried to pull her self free. Agony wracked her, but she needed to get free. “Madoka!”  
  
“Still trying? It’s over. Madoka is lost due to your own failures. You’re dying as well. Why keep flailing like this? At least take it with some dignity. But then again, you never deserved that either.”  
  
Homura tried to ignore her, but then she screamed in pain as Homulilly’s foot slammed down on her head. She twisted her feet, inflicting more agony on Homura, while she giggled.  
  
“I can see it now! Your grave: ‘ _Here lies Homura, the good-for-nothing. She died as she lived, a waste of space. Her life was a joke. And not even a funny one.’_ But I can see that you aren’t heeding my words. You never learn do you?” Homulilly shrugged and began to walk away. “Well, not like it make a difference anyways. Story of your life huh?”  
  
Homura was left alone, to struggle in futility against the massive weight pinning her down, while the fires drew ever closer...

* * *

“Homura?! Homura?!” Sora rushed through the city, becoming increasingly panicked. Where was she? He had been temporarily blinded from the flash of lightning and couldn’t see where Homura had landed. And now she was probably hurt, and in severe danger from the Heartless.  
  
He remembered her face, the severe bags and those eyes. They were so full of sadness. She had lost someone. Just like he had lost Riku and Kairi. She was on the same journey he once was. He understood her pain, what she was going through. He couldn’t fail her.  
  
But now he was so weak. He had failed his exam for the Mark of Mastery and was left behind, his strength gone. He was weaker now, and the people who depended on him were in danger because of it.  
  
Goofy and Donald approached him from different streets, both bearing the same disappointed expression.  
  
“I guess you guys haven’t had any luck either?” Sora said. The both shook their heads.  
  
“Well, we’ll just have to search harder.” He said. He then heard a humming sound. Fortunately he still had his reflexes. Sora turned and raised Kingdom Key, intercepting a series of red bolts. He instantly recognized what it meant.  
  
“[Finally](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JIhQCn1H_g), that got your attention.” A man in a black coat leaped down from a nearby rooftop. He had black hair with streaks of gray, multiple scars, and an eye-patch on his face. His one eye was yellow. Despite his laid back demeanor, an aura of menace and unease surrounded him.  
  
“Xigbar!”  
  
“Sora! See? I can say names too!”  
  
“Get out of the way, we don’t have time for you!”  
  
“Go away!” Donald shouted.  
  
“Yeah! No Organization!” Goofy added.  
  
“Oh, is that so? How rude!” Xigbar said with a mocking grin. “So tell me, do you think your optimizing your schedule properly?”  
  
“What?” Donald asked in confusion.  
  
“Just say what you mean!”  
  
“Oh but I did. No good will ever come of putting others before yourself.”  
  
“Oh yeah! Tell that to Herc!” Sora shot back. “He’s a hero! He always thinks of others before himself!”  
  
“As if! A pretty boy who has friends in high places. Fancy and all, but tricks like that don’t fly for your average joe.”  
  
“What do you know? You weren’t even there when he saved Meg from the underworld! If you were, you’d admire his courage!”  
  
“I don’t admire someone leaping into danger if it means someone else might have to jump in and save them. It seems so many are making mistakes like that these days...”  
  
Sora flinched at those words. Did he know about Homura?  
  
“You’re all just lining up to lose out. Dooming others to take the fall with ya’. It’s a fools game you get suckered into, and makes you lose sight of what’s really important. Oh, and spare me the usual party line. Yeah, hearts are powerful when their connected. But if you put too much of that power in one place, then those hearts might end up breaking." Xigbar sneered. "But then again… you don’t have any choice but to follow this sweet little trail of breadcrumbs, do you? And at the end you’ll finally realize what destiny has in store for you. In fact, your reward might be right around the corner. You’re so close!”  
  
He laughed as he walked away, a Dark Corridor opening up to take him in.  
  
Sora shoulder sagged as the confrontation ended. Once, he was able to go toe to toe with Xigbar and even worse than that and come out on top. And now he was helpless to do anything but take his taunts. He couldn’t stop Maleficent from hurting Homura either. Was he really just wasting his time?  
  
“Don’t let him getcha' down, Sora.” Goofy said. “He’s just tryin’ to mess with ya’. All those people you’ve helped along the way are real grateful. They don’t think you’ve wasted your time, and ain't that what matters?”  
  
Sora considered Goofy’s words, and took a deep breath. He was right. He had come too far to give up now. Weak or not, he’d have to see this through to the end.  
  
“Right, now let’s keep searching.”

* * *

“Hey, what are you stopping for?” A voice said.  
  
“I heard voices inside there. I think there might be someone trapped inside.”  
  
There was the sound of shifting rubble, and then light entered the room.  
  
“Yeah, you were right! There’s a girl trapped beneath those rocks!”  
  
Homura’s vision was blurry, but she could make out several figures standing at the entrance to the building.  
  
“Argh! The fire’s too hot! It’s blocking our way!”  
  
“There’s a fountain nearby. Grab some buckets and hurry!”  
  
“Right!”  
  
The figures vanished, leaving Homura alone again. What was happening?  
  
It wasn’t long before she heard rapid footsteps approaching. There were several splashes of water, and the temperature began to go down.  
  
“Good, they’re out of the way!” She heard more footsteps, and saw several blurry figures draw closer. “Don’t worry, we’ll have you out in no time!”  
  
What was happening? What did these people want with her? She wasn’t worth anything to them, was she?  
  
“Alright, put your legs into it!” There was the sounds of grunting, and then disappointment.  
  
“Dammit. It’s too heavy!”  
  
“What are we going to do?”  
  
“I know! Come with me!”  
  
The footsteps faded off into the distance. They were leaving. Whatever they wanted, they didn’t find it with her. Where had they gone? Her vision was too blurry to make anything out. Whatever, it wasn’t that important. She was so tired...  
  
Homura felt a gust of wind, and heard the sound of wings flapping. Then, more footsteps.  
  
“Everyone stand back!” A voice shouted. Suddenly, it was as if the great weight had been removed from her. She felt a pair of strong arms lifting her up and carrying her off. Was she dying? Was it finally over?  
  
“Oh no! Homura!”  
  
“Donald, hurry!”  
  
Those voices sounded familiar.  
  
“ _Cura_!” Her vision was filled with a bright green light. Suddenly, she felt… better. She could feel her legs. Her pain was gone. She could see clearly again. The fog that had settled over her mind was lifted and she was aware of where she was. She took in a deep breath.  
  
She realized she was being held, and when she moved, he set her down.  
  
“What happened?”  
  
“Maleficent blasted you away, and then the building dropped on you!” Sora explained. “It looks like Herc pulled you out though!”  
  
Homura turned to the man. This was Hercules? She’d read several of the myths, and this was not what she had expected him to look like. Regardless, she bowed.  
  
“Thank you.”  
  
“Hey, don’t thank me. Thank them.” Hercules pointed to the group of civilians nearby who were admiring a winged horse that could only be Pegasus. “They were the ones who cleared away the entrance and extinguished the fires. They only came to find me when the stones pinning you down were too heavy for them to lift.”  
  
At those words, Homura paused. Why? What value was she to them? She remembered Sora’s words: _“They were in danger, why else? That’s what heroes do!”._  
  
They reminded her of Madoka. But... Madoka was...  
  
Homura placed her fingers to her forehead, only to flinch when she realized that the were still bloodstained. She was still covered in her own blood.  
  
“Oh! I’ve got this!” Sora said, raising his Keyblade.  
  
“What?”  
  
“ _Water_!” Before Homura could react, a massive deluge of water came down on her, soaking her thoroughly.  
  
“Sora! What’d you do that for!” Squawked Donald.  
  
“Well, she was all messy. I thought I could help!”  
  
When she cleared her eyes she saw that the blood and dirt had indeed been washed off of her. Unorthodox, but effective. She ran her hands through her hair, using magic to dry it off. Her Puella Magi uniform was enchanted, it would dry itself off on it’s own after a bit.  
  
She then heard the clip clop of hooves. At first, she thought it was Pegasus, but it was coming from a completely different direction.  
  
She turned to see a woman in a purple dress walking alongside a short and fat Satyr.  
  
"Meg! Phil!"  
  
"Looking good, wonder boy!" The woman said flirtatiously.  
  
"How's it goin' champ?" The plump Satyr asked Hercules.  
  
"We just saved this girl from a burning building. You know, the usual. So, how's the evacuation going?"  
  
"Right on schedule. We've gotten everyone we can to the town square where they're safe!"  
  
Hercules breathed in relief. "That's good. Now, you need to get to safety."  
  
"What, are ya' kiddin' me?" Phil shouted, angrily shaking his fists. "Three words! Those things are chumps!"  
  
Homura tilted her head. _Wait… isn’t that four-_  
  
“I’d totally let ‘em have it. Show off for the ladies!” He then flexed and winked at Homura, who didn’t quite get it, but was revolted all the same.

* * *

  
_Just what is that old coot up to?_ Xigbar watched the proceedings from the shadows of a nearby building, musing on what he had observed. Xehanort had been disappearing randomly in recent times, beyond his ability to keep track of.  
  
Apparently, the fruits of his efforts had been this girl. But where had she come from? What was so special about her? Her affinity for time magic? Perhaps, something like that would be useful. But he had the feeling that it was more than that. That little display against Maleficent hinted at there being something more to her than a first impression would give.  
  
But what?  
  
Well, time to do a little research.  
  
A quick warp carried him to some nearby rooftops. Good, they still hadn’t noticed him. He grinned and snapped his fingers. A crackling dark cloud appeared over the area.  
  
“Eurystheus! Get to work!”

* * *

There was a sudden rumbling in the air. Homura looked around to see a dark cloud appear over the town square. People quickly moved out of the way as a gigantic jar came crashing down, demolishing several pillars and scattering debris everywhere. It resembled one of the old greek vases, and depicted on it was a [man wrestling with a lion](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/53/7d/66/537d66967db97707cff0bb953be63ca3.jpg). As she watched, the image came to life, and the lion slashed the man with it’s claws, throwing him to the ground. Then it _emerged from the vase_ , roaring. It’s eyes glowed yellow. A Heartless.  
  
The crowd screamed, and began to run for their lives.  
  
“Are you kiddin’ me?! That things huge!” Phil shouted.  
  
“What happened to _‘Those things are chumps?'_ ” Hercules asked with a grin?  
  
“Two words! I’ve got you!” Phil replied as he and Meg leaped upon Pegasus.  
  
“You guys guide everyone to another safe area! Sora, Donald, Goofy, Homura! With me!”  
  
“Right!” The five of them rushed towards the battle as the lion roared.

* * *

____As always, thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!___  
  
~Dragonexx_


	17. Labor of Loathing

Homura missed her arsenal. When her shield returned to her, she was disappointed to find it empty. She had built up that arsenal over multiple timelines, a stockpile of weapons enough to outfit an entire army. And now it was gone. She couldn’t even stop time either, her powers kept changing. There had been something so comforting and satisfying about the knowledge that she could simply pull all sorts of deadly weapons at a moments notice. It made so many problems so much simpler. A rocket launcher would have been so good right about now. Or a machine gun, or a string of grenades…  
  
But that was enough of that. If nothing else, she could lose herself in the fight.  
  
[Hercules](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNXckWDeI2Y) charged towards the lion and, with a solid punch, sent the Heartless flying across the square.It quickly rose up from where it lay and charged, only to be barraged by a wave of flames from Sora’s keyblade and arrows from Homura. Hercules then leaped towards the creature and lifted it up in a bear hug around the neck. The Heartless dispersed into wisps of darkness as he squeezed.  
  
The image on the vase shifted, showing a man aiming a sling at a [flock of birds](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f4/0b/af/f40baff6eddadc24dcbba4038e10cc81.jpg). Almost immediately, the birds in the painting began to animate and tear the man to pieces. They then emerged, becoming a flock of vicious Heartless birds.  
  
The creatures immediately flapped their wings, and a barrage of razor sharp feathers rained down. Homura ducked for cover behind a chunk of debris, hearing the metallic shounding _shink!_ and the crack of stone as the feathers embedded themselves in the marble.  
  
She quickly rose from her cover, skills gained from years of fighting enabling her to rapidly assess the situation. Goofy had increased the size of his shield, and he, Sora, and Donald were taking cover beneath it, avoiding the barrage of razor sharp feathers. Hercules wasn’t too bothered, the feathers simply bouncing off of him. However he was unable to get at the birds. They were too fast, dodging out of the way of his punches. He tried to hurl some debris at them, but they likewise dodged.  
  
Homura fired a shot from her bow which struck one of the Heartless and exploding. The others moved quickly out of the way, and returned fire, forcing Homura to take cover again, though not before receiving a cut on the forehead and arm.  
  
Homura moved, staying behind cover and out of sight, while the birds continued to fire at her former position. From a small opening, Homura focused her magic, the gears of her time shield whirring.  
  
“ _Slow_.” The spell took effect. She could see within her vision one of the bird be surrounded with the imagery of slowing clocks. The creatures movements became sluggish.  
  
But only one. Dammit, there were too many, just slowing one wouldn’t help much. She looked at her time shield. If her abilities were different, then now was as good a time as any to put them to the test.  
  
She activated it, but instead when she saw the gears begin to spin, stopped them and had them spin in the opposite direction. The words came to her “ _Haste!_ ”  
  
The clock imagery surrounded herself, and the world around her slowed down. The sensation was similar to when she stopped time, though, here the world was clearly still in motion, she was still capable of interacting with it. An unbidden grin came over her. She could work with this.  
  
Homura leaped over the collapsed pillar and opened fire on the Heartless, the creatures were too slow to react to the opening shot, though they resumed retaliating. Homura weaved in between the feather shots, letting loose a volley of arrows, picking off birds by the score.  
  
As she did so, she heard Donald squawk “ _Aero!_ ”  
  
The heat had been taken off of the others, and they were putting their freedom to good use. Another miniature tornado formed, sucking all the birds in together.  
  
Sora held out his Keyblade and shouted. “ _Fire_!” at the same time as Homura fired a barrage her bow. The birds were destroyed in an explosion of red and violet fires.  
  
Time around her began to resume it’s normal speed, as the spell expired. She was about to try and catch her breath, only to hear a snort from behind her and a shout.  
  
“Homura! Look out!”  
  
She turned just in time to see a bull-shaped Heartless charging towards her. She barely managed to duck beneath it’s horns, though she was still slammed to the ground by its body, whereupon one of its hooves came crashing down upon her, trampling her.  
  
As she finished rolling, Donald rushed over, raised his staff and shouted “ _Cure!_ ”  
  
Green light surrounded Homura, and the pain and injuries vanished. She looked up to see Hercules take a low stance as the bull charged towards him. When it drew close he grabbed it by the horns, sliding back and cracking the pavement from the sheer force of the clash. The bull snorted and began to push forwards, pushing Hercules along with it, causing his feet to create troughs in the stone.  
  
“Herc!” Sora was about to rush to his aid, when Homura (to even her own surprise) grabbed his arm.  
  
“No! He can handle himself. Get the vase!” She said, gesturing to the vase which, whatever it had [depicted before](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b0/0b/1c/b00b1c6d9ec0d06ee60c8be10fc90e3e.jpg), now bore a depiction of a gored and trampled man lying on the ground. “That’s where they’re all coming from!”  
  
Homura opened fire on the vase with her arrows, the violet explosions leaving cracks in the surface. In response, the jar suddenly rocked, and top was opened. The head of a strange sad-looking cat-like creature emerged from inside. Around it’s head was a golden laurel wreath decorated with the Heartless insignia. Homura immediately opened fire on the creatures head, only for it to duck back inside.  
  
The image on the jar changed, becoming a [depiction of two men fighting a multi headed serpent](https://www.getty.edu/museum/media/images/web/enlarge/01255001.jpg). The image moved, and the serpent dodged their swings, and then struck back, it’s multiple heads ripping them to shreds and eating them.  
  
From the top of vase a cloud of darkness formed. Out of that darkness emerged multiple snake heads that immediately lashed out.  
  
Homura quickly rolled to the side as a hydra head smashed into the ground where she had just been standing. She shot arrows at it as she rose to her feet, and the violet flames engulfed the snake head. It writhed as it was burned away to nothing but wisps of darkness.  
  
Sora quickly picked up on what needed to be done. He wreathed his keyblade in fire again and hurled it, slicing through several hydra heads, while Donald unleashed a gout of flame from his staff, burning through the rest. The heads writhed and disintegrated as a pair of spindly legs grew out from the bottom of the vase. The Heartless inside it was trying to flee.  
  
“It can’t leave the square! There are still people escaping!” Sora shouted.  
  
As they gave chase, more hydra heads emerged, blocking Homura’s attempts to hit the vase. She was forced to roll to the side, narrowly avoiding a bite from a head. She turned and shot, destroying it, only to her a thunk from behind her.  
  
A hydra head had snuck up behind her, and would have devoured her had Goofy not jumped in the way, intercepting its bite with his shield. He grinned and gave her the thumbs up, but Homura barely noticed. _It would have devoured her had_ -  
  
“Heads up!”  
  
She saw a shadow pass over her, and realized that it was the bull Heartless that Hercules had been wrestling with. He had hurled it directly at the vase, knocking aside the heads and smashing directly into it, creating several cracks and knocking it off balance.  
  
Taking advantage, Homura and Sora opened fire, destroying the remaining hydra heads and setting fire to the dark cloud they were emerging from, while Donald and Goofy struck at the vase directly.  
  
Eventually, the image changed again, [this time depicting ](https://usercontent1.hubstatic.com/4006400_f520.jpg)a man standing next to a three headed dog with a mane of serpents, while another man cowered in a vase. Again, the image came to life. Two heads tore into the man standing next to the dog, while the third then ripped the man out of the vase and ate him. The dog then leaped into the vase.  
  
As it did so, the vase Heartless jumped into the air. The legs retreated inside, before the vase came crashing back to the ground. From that impact, the a shadow spread out from it, covering the entire town square.  
  
“What _now?!”_ Sora asked.  
  
The shadows shifted beneath her, and Homura’s instincts screamed at her to _jump_. She was glad she did, because just after she did, a massive black dog head emerged from the ground, with razor sharp teeth. She aimed her bow downwards, and fired. The head retreated back into the shadows before her arrow could hit it.  
  
She looked over to see that Sora and Goofy had also both leaped into the air as well. Sora grabbed Goofy and hurled him at the vase shield first to score a direct and powerful hit.  
  
As she landed, she saw the shadows gather once again, and she had to roll out of the way, barely avoiding some sort of geyser of dark energy. At the same time, one of the dog heads emerged from the ground and shot a fireball out of it’s mouth.  
  
One of Homura’s arrows intercepted the fireball, another explosion of red and violet flames. While she did so, Hercules rushed forwards, grabbing the head and ripping it out of the ground, where it dispersed into shadows.  
  
She then opened fire on the vase, creating more cracks in it’s surface.  
  
The head of the Heartless peeked out, before retreating back in. The vase then leaped into the air, before crashing down towards Homura.  
  
“ _Haste!_ ” With the spells help she quickly dove out of the way, thankfully avoiding being crushed, though a shockwave erupted from the Heartless, sending her flying.  
  
With her augmented speed, she turned in the air, and opened fire as the Heartless’ head popped out briefly. It was a direct hit, causing the Heartless to reel back, dazed, just in time for Hercules to come charging forwards. He struck the vase with a punch so hard that it shattered, sending the Heartless within flying, to get struck in the head by Sora’s keyblade.  
  
The strange cat-like creature hit the ground and lay still, it’s body breaking apart much like the Wraith-Heartless had done so back in Mitakihara. From the mass of shadows, a gigantic glowing heart-shaped object emerged, floating off into the air and fading away, while the darkness covering the town square vanished.  
  
“Finally, that’s over.” Donald said.  
  
“Gotta say, it’s good to have you guys back!” Hercules said. “Though is there a reason you guys are visiting? I’d guess it’s not for the cheese and olives.”  
  
Sora immediately perked up. “Oh yeah!”  
  
“Sounds like somebody forgot.” Goofy observed.  
  
“That’s Sora!” Donald said.  
  
“Hey, I didn’t forget! I… just… took my time remembering.” Sora insisted. He then turned to Hercules. “Herc? I came here so I could ask you something.”  
  
“Ask me?”  
  
“Do you remember the last time we were together? You were feeling down and out. How’d you get your strength back? When you jumped in and saved Meg?"  
  
“Hmm… that’s a tough one. All I knew was that she was in trouble. Suddenly, I wanted to save her with all my heart, but… it’s not like I could tell you how.”  
  
“Oh...” Sora said.  
  
“Why? What’s wrong?”  
  
“All my strength’s gone from me too! That’s why I need you. Because I was hoping you could help. That you might have a solution or something.”  
  
“I’m sorry Sora.”  
  
The three of them looked disappointed, only to be interrupted by a sudden flash of lightning and booming thunder. Homura jumped, thinking Maleficent was nearby, but it wasn’t the case, it was too far away. She looked towards Hercules, who was staring at something. She followed his gaze, to Mount Olympus in the distance, where she could see storm clouds gathering around it.  
  
“Whats going on over there?” she asked.  
  
“It’s Hades!” Hercules said. “We have to go!”  
  
Homura was reminded of the last part of her mission. The one she dreaded. But she would have to see this through to the end.  
  


**\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

  
_Letting the others go first was_ so _worth it._ Mami thought as she sank into the bath. She needed this. It had been an absolute madhouse of a day, and a shower wasn’t going to cut it. She needed to soak. Some green tea would have been especially nice but she wasn’t complaining.  
  
They had originally planned to head to the train station after dinner, but the fatigue from the day was showing. They needed rest, and so they were directed to a hotel where they could stay the night. The place was definitely on the fancy side of things, but with the prize money, it was easily paid for.  
  
 _And it was money well spent._ Mami thought, as she sank lower into the bath, letting the heat and steam loosen her up. The bathtub was large, allowing her plenty of space to stretch out.  
  
Unbidden, her thoughts turned to the events of the day. In less than 24 hours, everything had been turned on it’s head. Their home world was in ruins, everyone having been taken away and now they had strange weapons and were fighting shadow monsters.  
  
Mami tried to put the thoughts out of her head. She wanted to focus on the bath. To relax and unwind, and let go of all the stress. But that it was clear she was going to have to confront it if she wanted to rest.  
  
Mami sighed and held out her hands. A silver musket appeared at her command. It was strange. Before today, she couldn’t recall so much as even _touching_ a gun before, not even a toy. And now, here she was, making shots like a veteran markswoman.  
  
The weapon felt intimately familiar to her, as if she had used it countless times. She sighted down the barrel while her hands automatically took the proper positions. All sorts of thoughts rushed through her mind. Take note of the wind. Be aware of her surroundings. Anticipate the enemy's movements. Don’t shoot carelessly. Each musket had only a single shot.  
  
The gun itself was very sturdy, enough to bash something with and still remain functional. And as she thought about that, a sequence of moves entered her mind. Strike at an enemy to knock them away, then open fire. Use recoil to step back and spin, drawing a second gun for a second shot to down them.  
  
It was things like that. She’d never been in a fight, she couldn’t recall having ever done anything more than a slap. And now here she was calling out tactical orders like destroying a bridge, or to retreat from battle, or to focus fire, with confidence, like she had done it all before.  
  
They listened to her as well. Which gave her an uneasy sense of responsibility. True she was the oldest among them, so it was her responsibility to ensure their well being. But why did this feel so familiar? An odd sensation of _Déjà Vu_.  
  
It also felt like there was more to this than what she had seen so far. Ramuh had explained where Crystal Clarity had come from. But what about everyone else’s weapons? She lifted the gun again and ran her hands down it’s length. She found that she knew every detail about the weapon, from the bullet to the powder, and the gears and hammer. But where had that knowledge come from?  
  
Her thoughts turned to Madoka. Besides the Keyblade, there was that glowing aura of pink energy that surrounded her, allowing her to perform amazing feats of acrobatics and combat. She also summoned Ramuh. In addition to her cutlasses, Sayaka could heal rapidly from even severe injuries.  
  
Mami had the feeling that there was more to her own abilities than what she had seen. Like she hadn’t even gotten to the core of what they could do. But how did she use them? Madoka’s aura had come from nearly falling into a crowd of Heartless. Sayaka had almost burned to death. Ramuh had been summoned just as Homura was tearing the world apart.  
  
She blanched at the thought of these things and the possible implications. It was looking to be a very dangerous journey, and they would need all the magical powers they could get. Was desperation, trauma, and near-death experiences the way to discover them though?  
  
Mami sighed. She felt like the most well-off member of the group. The deaths of her parents had been so long ago that the pain had faded. She missed them, yes, but she supposed that she would move on after a while. Their deaths hadn’t been as despair filled as Kyoko’s family, and she hadn’t been forced to watch them waste away both physically and mentally like Nagisa. Likewise, their deaths weren’t as recent and violent as Madoka’s and Sayaka’s families.  
  
And now, she had Kyoko and Nagisa with her. They had their arguments and disagreements of course, but it was obvious that they were better off together. Living with them, Mami had been the happiest she could ever remember in a long time.  
  
Mami found herself yawning. She really did need her sleep. There were a lot of things she didn’t know, but they were meeting with a wizard tomorrow. A wizard who was also a retired Keyblade Master. Yen Sid would definitely be able to explain things, and provide them with a clear course of action.  
  
She had relaxed in the bath enough. She was clean. She emerged, dried herself off, and donned a robe before exiting the bathroom.  
  
Outside, she looked at the others. Nagisa was in one bed, while Madoka was in the other. Kyoko was fast asleep on the couch.  
  
Sayaka, however, was sitting in a chair, looking out the window. She looked wistful and pensive, which was unlike her.  
  
“Sayaka?”  
  
“This really is a completely different world, isn’t it?”  
  
“Well, yes. What do you mean?”  
  
“They look the same as we do, act the same, yet, there it is, right there.” Sayaka said, gesturing to the sky. Mami got what she meant. The entire time they had been here, the sun had not changed position in the sky. It was locked in a perpetual sunset.  
  
“Giant monsters, explosions, car chases, ancient prophecies. It’s like I went to sleep normally, but woke up in an action movie. You’d think all that would hammer the message, but it’s the sun that makes it sink in. This is all real, isn’t it?”  
  
“Are you okay?”  
  
“To be honest, I’m not sure. Like, I know my parents are gone. I can get them back, but...” Sayaka paused, her hands suddenly gripping the chair hard. After a moment, she took a deep breath and began to relax. “I… just don’t know what to feel.”  
  
“It’s been an emotional roller coaster of a day.” Mami said as she leaned forwards, placing her hand on Sayaka’s shoulders. “Like I said with Kyoko, if you need to let it out, feel free to.”  
  
Sayaka embraced Mami. “Thanks, but I’ve got it.”  
  
“Sayaka? You don’t need to hold it in. We’ve all been through a lot.”  
  
“I know, that’s why. It’s for her sake.” Sayaka turned towards the sleeping Madoka.  
  
“How so?”  
  
“She’s… really struggling to hold it together. If I give in… then she’ll have it way worse. I don’t want to do that to her. She’s already has it hard enough.”  
  
Mami paused, remembering Madoka's scars, and how she had clearly been crying earlier. She understood, and smiled at Sayaka. “Alright. But if you ever need a moment, just know I’m here.”  
  
“Thank you.”  
  
“Now, we really should be getting to bed.” Mami said. She climbed into the bed with Nagisa, who was fast asleep and muttering about looking for cheese.

**\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

  
Madoka had been facing away, but she had still overheard the conversation.  
  
As Sayaka climbed into the bed next to her Madoka felt more lost. Everyone was doing so much for her, but she was still so afraid. They were all counting on her, but she wasn’t so sure that she could live up to those expectations. Did she deserve it? Sayaka said she could do it but she was also putting on a brave face for her. She also remembered Kyoko's words. She really wasn't that good at anything, and now she almost literally had the weight of the world placed on her. Why? What made her so special that a Keyblade would choose her? She didn't feel exceptional. But would she even know if she was? Was it all the Keyblade? Was she still just a naive, useless, girl without it?  
  
These thoughts troubled Madoka as she drifted off into a fitful sleep.  
  


**\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**   


_As always, thanks to_[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!  
  
~Dragonexx


	18. Titanfall

The scenery of Mount Olympus was beautiful, or so Homura supposed it must have been. Wilderness mixed with the ruins of old Greek structures was impressive to look at, though she was far to distracted with her own thoughts to take much notice of it.  
  
Her thoughts returned to the prior fight. The hydra head. She hadn’t even noticed it, and would have died if it hadn’t been for Goofy. She snarled.

This couldn’t be blamed on her current state. She had gotten sloppy, complacent. Lost her edge. Her duty was to protect Madoka, and she was becoming lax in that. She hadn’t been vigilant enough and it had cost her everything.

But what to do about it? She thought back to what Hercules had said back in Thebes, about regaining lost strength. There was something there, but it was all so frustrating and made her long for something to fight to take her mind off of things.

Her musings were interrupted by the appearance of a cloud of smoke in front of the group. When it cleared, there stood a tall man with blue skin and hair seemingly made of blue fire. He wore black robes that faded away to dark mist near the ground.

“Ah, jeez Louise, what does it take to get rid of you? I though Cyclops had the job for ol’ Wonder Breath here, but I suppose that’s what you get for outsourcing. My bad. I’ll promote internally next time. Much more reliable that way. By hey, die and learn, right?”

“Hades!” Hercules and Sora both shouted simultaneously. They, along with Donald and Goofy dropped into a fighting stance, weapons ready.

“And you teamed up with the brats. And now there’s more of the brats. Today just _has_ be the day for unwanted guests. First Maleficent, then the Three Stooges here, and now this girl. WONDERFUL!” Bright glowing red flames engulfed Hades, though as quickly as they were ignited, they extinguished, returning to the simple flames on his head. “No, nope. Nuh-uh. It’s cool. Not gonna let this get me down. Today's a good day. Just gotta move up my time table a bit, shed some unnecessary side projects and...”

To everyone’s surprise, Homura stepped in front of the group.

“Lord Hades. I-”

“Woah, woah, woah, kid. Why so formal? You can just call me Hades, the one and true, better than all those wannabes, The Hadester, The Hunk of Burnin’ Love.”

 _Wait did he just reference…? Never mind._

“I need to ask you something. I need to know if-”

“Gonna have to stop you right there. I’m kinda on a schedule tootz. Cosmic dominion and all that. If you could be so kind as to write that down on a black goat, sacrifice it to my secretary Daeira, and we’ll get back to you on that in 6-8 business years. Real efficient. None of that floor banging stuff. Gives me a Zeus-danged headache. Oy vey. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have an important meeting with my little brother!” Hades disappeared in a puff of smoke.

“Wait!” Homura shouted, but the god was already gone.

“That doesn’t sound good. I hope I’m wrong, but my family might need me.” Hercules said. He whistled, and there was a neighing sound as Pegasus came flying down.

“Your family?” Sora asked.

“Yeah, dad’s king of the gods. HYAH!” Pegasus took off towards the top of the mountain carrying Hercules with him.

“WHAAAAT?!” Sora, Donald, and Goofy called out at the same time.

“His father is a god. But doesn’t that mean… Herc is a god too?”

“You… didn’t know that?” Homura asked. They’d clearly spent time with Hercules before… But they were also from other worlds, so maybe the myths didn’t exist wherever they were from, so they had never thought to question it.

“Well… you learn something new every day.” Goofy said.

“Yeah, no wonder he’s so strong.” Donald added.

“Yeah, he’s definitely got this… Oh! What were you trying to ask Hades about?” Sora turned to Homura.

“Hades is the god of the dead. If someone were dead, regardless of world he could know. I needed to know if Madoka-”

“You can’t give up hope!” Sora interrupted.

“No. I have to know.” Homura said. She looked up at the peak of the mountain. The storm was spreading rapidly, bringing rain close to them at such speed that she could see the sheets drawing nearer. “I can’t afford not to.”

“Alright, then we’ll go with you!”

She storm was nearly upon them.

“You want to come with me into _that_?” She asked.

“Heroes never quit!” Donald said.

“Yeah, we fight with all our heart!” Sora said.

And then the storm engulfed them, bringing with it driving rain and howling winds, cutting off Homura’s reply. It didn’t matter, she had a mission.

Thus, they climbed their way up the mountain. The going was rough and frustrating. Scaling narrow mountain ledges was treacherous enough, throw in driving rain slicking the rocks, and Heartless attacking at random, and it was like the worst of Labyrinths. Eventually however, they managed to make some significant progress.

[As they](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGlZP-WabJg) reached a clearing in the rocks there was a sudden shaking of the earth and a roar. Rocks began to slide around them, and a massive shadow fell over Homura. She looked up… _and saw the massive building coming towards her. She heard the cruel, maddened, laughter preceding the impact that would signal failure. That she had again lost to Walpurgisnacht. That all her efforts over the previous month and a half had been for naught, that Madoka was doomed once more. She had failed her, again. She-_

* * *

  
Sora dashed forwards, grabbing onto Homura and narrowly pushing her out of the way of a falling boulder. Though he was now lying on top of her, Homura didn’t seem to react in the slightest. Her eyes were wide in a thousand-yard stare. Even as he sat up, she did nothing.

“Homura! Are you okay?!”

“I-I’ve failed. Again. Again. Again.” She repeated.

“No! It’s not over. You can do this!” Sora said.

“I can’t...” Homura said.

“You _can_. Madoka’s really lucky to have someone like you looking after her! Someone like that wouldn’t give up so easily! You’re stronger than you think you are! Never forget that!” He shouted.

“Madoka...” Homura’s eyes refocused, seeming to become aware of where she was. As Sora moved off her she stood up, and looked up at the mountain. Sora followed her gaze to where he could see a massive silhouette with two pairs of glowing red eyes moving about.

Homura took off, leaping up the side of the cliff face on rock outcroppings.

“That’s the spirit!” Sora shouted as he followed her, running up the side of the cliff.

There was a roar in the distance, as what was clearly the Rock Titan shouted. “I’ll crush you! _Quake!_ ”

The mountain shook again, and boulders began raining from the sky. Sora looked worried at Homura, but she was resolute, aiming her bow.

He followed her lead, and a volley of fireballs and arrows blasted apart rocks that drew to close as the group scaled the cliff. Eventually, they began leaping on the rocks, using them to reach further positions as they ascended until they reached the top of the cliff.

There they could see that the two-headed titan was still so far away.

“Crush you! _Quakera!_ ” The entire mountain shook, and a massive landslide of boulders came crashing down towards them.

“What do we do!” Donald shouted.

Goofy looked about, and pointed towards a cave. “In here, hurry!”

He expanded his shield, with everyone rushing under it, managing to deflect the falling rocks until they safely made it into the cave.

Everyone stopped for a moment to catch their breath. Except Homura.

“That was too close.” Donald said.

“How do we get up now?” Goofy asked as he saw that the cave entrance had been blocked off.

“This cave must lead higher up the mountain.” Homura said, noting the path before her.

“Right let’s go!”

Sure enough, the exit came soon, leading back out into the rain and another mountain path. As they rushed forwards, they were interrupted by a sudden rock crashing down to the ground near them.

Sora was about to ignore it when she saw the rock shift, revealing it to actually be a giant rocky Heartless armed with an axe. The Rock Troll leaped towards Sora, who barely got out of the way of it’s swing.

* * *

  
Homura had faced one of these creatures before, back on her island. There, she had been a goddess, but now, she wasn’t. But that didn’t matter. It stood no chance anyways. She laughed as she rushed forwards, sliding beneath an axe swing and shooting at the Heartless’ leg. It stumbled back, where Sora shot a burst of water into it’s face. The impact toppled the creature to the ground, Homura leaped into the air, prepared to rain down arrow shots on the Heartless, only to be interrupted by the appearance of reinforcements.

Round heartless with rocky spikes emerged, and immediately began charging at Homura, spinning wildly. She didn’t even break a sweat as she twisted out of the way, of the attack, allowing Donald and Goofy to intercept them, but unfortunately, also allowing the giant Heartless to rise.

She attempted to shoot it again, only for it to block the attack with it’s axe, which also left it open for Sora to slash it in the face with a Keyblade engulfed in flames. As he kicked off of it, it attempted to retaliate, allowing Homura free reign to open fire while she circled around the Heartless. As it turned to swing at her, Sora leaped back on it’s head and fired a jet of water directly into the Heartless’ eyes, blinding it. Sora leaped off as Homura jumped into the air next to him. Sora's keyblade glowed with light, releasing a storm of glowing projectiles at the same time that Homura loosed three arrows simultaneously. Both of them shouted. “ _Flame of Dawn!”_

The light projectiles converged on the arrows as they were fired causing them to transform into swirling vortexes of glowing light and blazing shadow. The attacks struck the Heartless head on, blasting it straight off the mountain and taking the other Heartless with it, sending them falling to their demise.

Sora grinned as the two of them landed. He gave her a thumbs up. “See! I knew you could do it!”

Despite herself, Homura felt a warm smile creep across her face. _This… isn’t so bad…_

The mountain suddenly shook again, and they looked up to see the Rock Titan standing on a cliff just above them.

“Oh right!” Sora said. He turned to Homura and the others. They all nodded, and rushed towards the cliff.

The Titan roared and hurled down conjured rocks at them as they attempted to ascend the cliff. There were several close calls, made worse by the driving rain making it hard to see. Upon reaching the top of the cliff, they both leaped onto the Titan’s body, attempting to make their way to the heads. The Titan shook itself, hurling them off and releasing a barrage of falling rocks.

The hit the ground and took shelter beneath the Titan’s body.

“Where’d you go!” The Rock Titan demanded. “Show yourselves so I can crush you!”

“How are we gonna get up there?!” Goofy asked.

Homura looked around the area, and noted several small cracks in the titan’s legs.

“His feet! Bring him down!”

She opened fire on the titans right foot, widening the cracks, which started to glow. Sora and Goofy followed suit, charging forwards and striking the foot with their weapons, inflicting even more damage, which was exacerbated by Donald aiming a bolt of lightning directly into the cracks, blasting off pieces of stone.

The Titan roared in pain as it staggered. “There you are!”

The Rock Titan stomped it’s foot and spikes of stone emerged from the ground, forcing everyone to retreat from the foot, barely avoiding impalement. A flurry of stomps and flying rocks forced everyone to rapidly dodge the onslaught.

“ _Haste!_ ” Homura cried as she cast the spell, increasing her own movement speed. The carnage around her slowed down, allowing her to duck beneath a flying boulder and then leap off a rising stalagmite, to get a clear shot at the other leg.

As the titan roared in pain, Sora leaped into the air followed by Goofy who he then hurled toward the Titan’s leg. With his shield, Goofy smashed through several rocks to score a direct impact, widening the cracks.

Homura took advantage, firing multiple arrows into the crack. The Titan roared in pain as the cracks glowed. The massive creature staggered back, leaning on the mountain.

“Alright!” Sora said.

“Good goin’ Homura!” Goofy said.

“Now, to the heads!” Donald exclaimed.

The disoriented Titan was helpless to stop them as the group leaped up it’s massive body, straight towards the top of the living mountain.

When there, the heads tried to bite at them, though they were too slow to be effective. Sora leaped about between the two heads, striking them about. There wasn’t anything the titan could do as Donald and Goofy joined in on the attack. This fight was _over_. All that was left was the finishing blow.

“Give me a boost!” She shouted. Sora leaped out of the way as Donald cast _Aero._ Homura leaped atop the sudden updraft. From the air, Homura activated her shield, the gears within spinning wildly and randomly, clashing in impossible rotations. She felt energy flow from it into her, and the world around her warped. She saw images of clocks spinning frantically. As she aimed her bow, spectral clock-gears tipped in violet flames formed in front of it, rapidly turning until they were a blur of purple color. As she released her shot, augmented by the pure power of Time she couldn’t help but shout “ _Horology_!”

As the arrow passed through the gears, it got larger and faster, until it exploded directly against the Rock Titan, slamming it against the mountain with immense force, triggering an avalanche. Homura was about to give a cheer of victory as the titan was swept down the mountain, however her blood ran cold when she saw Sora get knocked off his perch and caught in the rockslide, crushing him beneath tons of stone.

* * *

 _I think someone called it earlier._

 _As always, thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!_

 _~Dragonexx_


	19. Homura's Odyssey (Part 1)

The sound. The horrifying sound. A scream, cut short by the deluge of rock. The chill, the twisted feeling of dread.  
  
Donald and Goofy were frozen, not seeming to comprehend what they saw. Homura’s felt horrid as she landed. The bow slipped from her grip to the ground with a clatter.  
  
 _No! No no no! Please no!_ She rushed over to the pile of rocks, and began to pull them off. The driving rain and her own tears blurred her vision. She didn’t care. The rocks were sharp, and cut into her hands. She didn’t care. Homura grew more frantic as she dug deeper, tossing rocks aside, no heed given to the effect the labor had on herself.  
  
 _Save him! Save him! Dammit Homura, for once in your pathetic_ joke _of a life, DO SOMETHING RIGHT!_  
  
After shifting one rock, she saw Sora’s limp hand, and her heart sank. She collapsed to her knees, about to sob when she saw the hand twitch.  
  
“Sora!” Homura dug even faster, tossing rocks aside until she finally managed to unearth him. He was injured, though not too severely, he must have wound up in a safe area and mercifully avoided being killed. He coughed, as he attempted to pull himself out.  
  
“ _Cura_!” Donald shouted. Green light enveloped Sora, healing his wounds. He immediately sprung up, and dusted himself off.  
  
“Sora… I’m so sorry. I-”  
  
“Hey, it’s no biggie! We won right?” Sora said as he looked over the cliff, grinning.  
  
“Yep! One down, three to go!” Donald confirmed.  
  
“Then let’s get moving, I want to see Olympus!” Sora said, looking towards a cave in the distance.  
  
The others ran off into the tunnel, while Homura stood motionless.  
  
“What did you think was going to happen?”  
  
Homura didn’t even flinch this time, instead collapsing to her knees as she heard the steps of bare feet approaching her.  
  
“ _I said_ : What did you think was going to happen?”  
  
Homura said nothing, until a skeletal hand grabbed by her hair and forced her to look up.  
  
“Let me repeat myself again. What. Did. You. Think. Was. Going. To. Happen?” Homulilly pulled Homura’s head up to face her own.  
  
“I… don’t know.” Homura said. “It was nice to be around them… They made me feel good.”  
  
“Did they now?” Homulilly said. She then slapped Homura across the face. Homura didn’t resist and instead collapsed to the ground. Homulilly gestured to the rock pile. “Fat lot of good it did them. You just show up in the middle of their quest, insert yourself into it, and then you go and pull a Mami. They’re worse off for meeting you. Just like Madoka.”  
  
“Of whom you have callously _betrayed_!” Another voice snarled behind her. The fluttering of black feathers signaled the arrival of the Devil. “Are you so cowardly that you would forsake your life’s purpose? After everything you have sacrificed, you would just abandon her to the winds of fate?”  
  
“I-I’m not!” Homura protested.  
  
“What does it matter? She’s dead and it’s Homura’s fault. Ripping her apart and making her vulnerable. Then she gets torn to pieces by Heartless. Imagine it, the sheer pain as she dies, soaked in her own blood, unable to to more than gurgle, never knowing the twisted monster who condemned her to this awful fate. And now she’s going to ruin other peoples lives too.”  
  
“Madoka is _not_ dead.” The Devil hissed. She grabbed Homulilly by her collar. “She was saved, first from the loathsome Incubators, then from the wicked Goddess. She was given a new life. Freedom from having to bear the sins of a rotten world.”  
  
“And it killed her. Gaslit to the point where she was unable to even defend herself.” Homulilly calmly replied, before pushing the Devil away. “And now she’s trying to replace Madoka with Sora. And going down the same path. It’s clear she’s learned nothing.”  
  
“On that matter, it appears we have somewhat of an agreement. A betrayal of Madoka.” The Devil said as both she and Homulilly turned to Homura, who was rising to her knees.  
  
“No! It isn’t! Sora forgave her! He doesn’t blame her!” Akemi jumped in front of Homura.  
  
“If we continue to remain by his side, he will come to despise us like Madoka does.”  
  
“Sora’s not like that. Madoka’s not like that either!”  
  
“You! You are the one who is planting these naïve ideas in her head!” The Devil strode forwards and struck Akemi in the face. Akemi fell to the ground, clutching her nose and sobbing, only for the Devil to lean over, grab her by the hair and begin striking her again. “Making her weak!”  
  
“Prolonging her suffering!” Homulilly joined in, kicking Akemi.  
  
Akemi sobbed. “No! Please! This isn’t right!”  
  
“All you’ve ever done is let Madoka die, over and over and over! You were never anything but a burden. A waste!”  
  
Homura closed her eyes, and covered her ears, attempting to block out the noise, though it was futile. She could still hear Akemi sobbing.  
  
“This isn’t right! Please-”  
  
“ _STOP!”_ Homura shouted. There was silence.  
  
When she opened her eyes, she saw that she was alone, no trace of the others, only the pouring rain which covered up her sobs.  
  
Eventually, she heard footsteps. Were they back? She cringed in expectation of more mockery, only to hear a different voice instead.  
  
“Hey Homura! You have to come see this, it’s amazing! You won’t believe it!” He said. “Homura?”  
  
Homura clenched her fists and bit her tongue before forcing herself to her feet. She couldn’t burden him with this. Thankfully the rain covered up her tears as he approached.  
  
"Are you okay?" He asked.  
  
“Yes, I’m coming.” She said, as she followed him into the tunnel, and indeed, gasped at what she saw on the other side.  
  
Stepping out of the tunnel the rainstorm was gone. Instead she was now apparently standing on top of a cloud. Just ahead was a beautifully designed staircase leading to a set of pearly gates, all illuminated by a soft golden light.  
  
The group climbed the staircase, taking note of the crystals scattered about the area. As the approached the top, the gates opened, and a golden light shined forth, momentarily blinding them.  
  
When it faded, they found themselves at the entrance to a massive golden city that even Homura was taken aback by.  
  
“Is this... Olympus?” Sora said, in awe.  
  
“Gawrsh, it’s amazing!” Goofy said.  
  
Homura had to agree. The building were all intricately carved and shaped from white stone and gold metal, all built atop clouds which steadily drifted through the city, holding up structures, creating bridges, or just decorating the area. Beautiful statues and carvings decorated the streets, while crystals atop posts functioned as lights. It certainly looked fitting as a Realm of the Gods.  
  
Madoka would love to see a place like this. Internally, she smiled at the though, though it soon turned sour. Even if she managed to get her back, Madoka would never truly accept her after what she had to do. But it was necessary, all the same, upsetting as it was.  
  
Then she heard that sound. That terrible, watery sound, that heralded the arrival of the Heartless.  
  
“A fanfare?” Donald asked.  
  
Dark portals appeared and out of them emerged a squad of minotaur shaped Heartless.  
  
“Nope!” Sora said, drawing his Keyblade.  
  
Homura readied her bow. At least she had something to vent the frustration on.  
  
The minotaurs lowered their faceplates and charged, a massive stampede of horns, forcing everyone to leap out of the way. As he did so, Sora cast _Water_ on the ground in front of the crowd, causing the minotaurs to slip and fall over each other.  
  
Homura jumped into the air over the now prone crowd and fired her bow into the middle of it. The minotaurs were scattered, some sent flying, while those closest to the center were destroyed.  
  
With the charge broken, Sora leaped into the fray, cutting down several of the disoriented minotaurs while avoid swings of their from those that managed to rise to their feet.  
  
Homura landed on the head of one of the Heartless, and it bucked in an attempt to knock her off. Unfortunately, it ended up goring one of it’s companions, after which Homura leaped off it’s head, and shot arrows at both of them.  
  
As she landed, she was forced to roll out of the way to narrowly avoid a punch from a Minotaur, which she countered with an arrow shot, while Donald rained down lightning bolts on the remainders of the crowd.  
  
Sora leaped back and pumped his fist. “Ha! They weren’t so tough!”  
  
“Yeah!” Donald said  
  
The celebration was again interrupted by the sound of thunder off in the distance. When she looked up, she saw flashing lights in the city’s acropolis.  
  
“That must be where everyone is!” Sora said.  
  
“Right!”  
  
The group rushed through the city, towards the peak. As she ran, Homura observed the place. Though it was beautiful, it was also disturbingly lifeless in a way that uncomfortably reminded her of Mitakihara in the aftermath of the Heartless attack. This was a divine city, but were even gods not safe from becoming Heartless?  
  
Their travels carried them into a building through which streams of water flowed. It was clearly a thoroughfare of some sort, and Homura could easily imagine the gods passing through here, idly chatting about the news of the world, boasting about accomplishments, and detailing quests done in their name. When there was life in this place, it surely must have been beautiful. Now, however, it was empty, the sound of water feeling eerie and unpleasant. It seemed the only way forwards though. They followed the stream of water down a tunnel of clouds to what must have been the forge of Hephaestus. There was a sharp rise in temperature as they entered, looking about in awe.  
  
The battle couldn't have been that long ago. Everything was still active, as if the forgemaster had only stepped away for a few moments. The fires in the furnace still burned, and the pots were filled with molten metal. At the other end of the place was another tunnel of clouds, which the followed, taking them towards the top of Olympus. There, the signs of the battle were more apparent, as shattered buildings and chunks of stone floated through the air. In the distance, there were flashes of light of various colors. Fortunately, the rubble made for easy climbing points. They were at the peak in no time.  
  
As they approached the top of Olympus, Homura could see the other three titans. One was a towering skeleton made of ice, another a blob of glowing lava in a vaguely humanoid shape, the third a living tornado.  
  
The first two were currently in the process of imprisoning a white haired figure that could only be Zeus, by dousing him in lava and then rapidly cooling it, encasing him in a pillar of stone. Around the area were what he presumed were the other gods, bound by chains while a pair of little demons mocked them.  
  
“I swear to you Hades! When I get out of this-” He was unable to finish his threat as the pillar of stone fully engulfed him.  
  
“No! I’m the one giving the orders now, bolt boy! And I think I’m gonna like it here!” Hades boasted. He conjured a black throne for himself, and upon reclining, conjured a drink. It reminded her of herself, and a surge of guilt ran through her. It was quickly beaten back down however. She wasn’t like Hades. She wasn’t a conqueror hell bent on revenge. This wasn’t about some slight. She was protecting Madoka. That was what had brought her here.  
  
“I wouldn’t get too comfortable!” A familiar voice shouted and Hades spat out his drink in shock. Homura heard a whinny, and the flapping of wings.  
  
Hercules had arrived on the back of Pegasus. He cut through several flying Heartless as he approached the acropolis, at the same time as the others.  
  
“Were gonna stop you.” Sora shouted, drawing Hades attention to them.  
  
"ALREADY?!” Hades shouted, his blue flames again becoming red.  
  
At that moment, there was the sound of arriving Heartless again, though on a massive scale. Everyone paused and turned to see an immense horde of Heartless gathering just outside the gates.  
  
“Aha! Finally something useful from that hag!” Hades pumped his fists.  
  
The area grew darker as the Heartless approached. Minotaur and centaur heartless were gathering outside the gates, ramming into them, while flying heartless filled the skies.  
  
“Gawrsh, there’s too many to count!” Goofy said as he looked out at the horde.  
  
 _Too many to fight._ Homura thought. What could they do? Titans and Hades on one side, and Heartless on the other. She looked around, and her eyes locked on the chained gods.  
  
“Sora! Let’s even the odds!”  
  
Sora followed where she was pointing and immediately got what she was suggesting. He aimed his Keyblade in their direction, and the tip of the blade glowed, forming a circle of light. Out from the center, a beam of light struck the chains. There was a _very satisfying_ sound of a lock tumbling, and then the chains surrounding the gods vanished. The two demons fled for their lives.  
  
“NO! NO! NO!” Hades shouted at the top of his lungs. But it was too late. A red skinned god that could only be Ares donned a helmet and drew a sword.  
  
“To battle!” He shouted. The other gods followed in his lead, charging towards the Heartless horde.  
  
The party turned back to Hades, who was seething. “GET THEM!”  
  
The Titans obliged his commands, the three of them stomping towards the group, as Hercules leaped off of Pegasus to join them. Homura grit her teeth as she readied her bow. She had intended for the gods to fight the Titans while she, Sora, Donald, and Goofy dealt with the Heartless, but this worked too, she supposed. It would be just like fighting Witches, she reassured herself. Three Witches at once...

* * *

 _As always, thanks to_[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!  
  
~Dragonexx


	20. Homura's Odyssey (Part 2)

  
[“ _Meltdown!_ ”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c__d2gXSunM&t=28s) The Lava Titan belched molten rock into the air, opening the battle with a rain of burning stone.  
  
Homura quickly dodged the deadly rain and retaliated with multiple arrows. The arrows sank into the titan’s liquid body and exploded, blasting chunks out of the creature. It didn’t seem too fazed by the impact however.  
  
Homura was about to fire again when she felt a sudden drop in temperature. She narrowly slid out of the way of a blast of freezing cold breath that coated the acropolis floor in solid ice. The Ice Titan then staggered towards her, breaking off its feet from where they were frozen to the ground earlier, and extending towards their new location.  
  
Homura dodged out of the way of the stomp, and almost got caught in a freezing shockwave shot from the impact.  
  
The Ice Titan reached down, intending to swipe her with its claws, only for a jet of flame to wash over its hand. It recoiled in pain as Donald continued to spray fire at the creature. When it attempted to reach Homura with its other hand, Hercules hurled a huge chunk of rock into the Titan’s face, causing it to stumble back. Homura opened fire, creating several cracks in its ribcage.  
  
There was then a sudden spike in temperature as the Lava Titan surged forth like a living wave of molten death  
  
“Aero!” Donald shouted. A whirlwind formed beneath him and Homura, propelling them both out of the way of the deadly flow firing volleys of projectiles all the while. As they landed, the Titan turned, and hurled more globs of lava at them.  
  
“Haste!” Homura enhanced her speed and avoiding the lava. She was about to shoot at the Titan, when a blast of wind blew her away, sending her shot wild. She hit the ground and tried to run, but she tripped. Looking down, she saw her foot had been frozen over.  
  
“Blizzard!” Said the Ice Titan with a raspy cry. Homura looked up to see large chunks of ice appearing in the air to come streaking towards her.  
  
Homura rolled to her feet and jammed the heel of her shoe into the ice, cracking it, and pushed off of the now tractioned ground to evade the icy projectiles. As she leaped into the air, Sora came running beneath her, charging towards the Ice Titan.  
  
He leaped off an icicle it shot at him, propelling himself directly towards the Titans head. Homura was about to join him, when the sound of howling winds approached her.  
  
Even being hasted didn’t give her enough time to react, as the Wind Titans arm extended toward her, opening into a funnel that sucked Homura in. Almost instantly, she was ejected out the top of the vortex, sent hurtling into the sky.  
  
It would have been nice to have her wings back. Up here, Homura was a sitting duck without them, at the mercy of the Titan’s attacks and the cruel force known as gravity as well. As she looked down, she saw the Wind Titan drawing in molten globs from the Lava Titan and launching them up at her like a gatling gun.  
  
Not to be outdone, Homura retaliated with shots from her bow, though it was barely enough to keep up with the stream of molten bullets. Small bits splatted onto her, burning holes in her uniform and leaving aggravating burns in their wake. Her arrow shots quickly became ineffective as she reached the apex of her launch.  
  
She felt the dreaded sensation of gravity taking effect as she began to fall. However, before she could gain much speed, there was the sound of a whinny and a blur of motion.  
  
When Homura opened her eyes, she found she was now sitting on the back of Pegasus. She had never ridden a horse (or any animal) before, but she’d have to make the most of this opportunity. “Hyah!”  
  
Pegasus flew through the battlefield, weaving in between the Titan’s attacks, while Homura rained down arrows upon them. Massive fists of violently turbulent wind swung at them, but Pegasus was too agile to be hit by such blows, and the Titan’s swing left its face vulnerable to shots from Homura’s bow. The creature recoiled from the shots, and frantically sucked up sharp pieces of ice to aim at them. Homura raised her shield, and a purple aura extended from it, intercepting the barrage of cold and ice.  
  
As the snowflakes faded, Homura looked up to see that the Wind Titan had shot more lava into the air. Pegasus tried to dodge, with Homura supporting him, but a dual barrage was starting to overwhelm them.  
  
She considered casting Haste but it wouldn’t do much when she wasn’t moving under her own power. She attempted to cast Slow on the Titan but it didn’t seem to have any effect. It clearly had some sort of magic resistance. How convenient.  
  
Pegasus grunted in pain. Even with Homura’s help, small bits of lava or shards of ice were getting through. Then an idea overcame her. If she could cast Slow on others, then why not…  
  
“Haste!” Pegasus whinnied triumphantly as his speed and reaction time massively increased. The barrage of fire and ice became nothing as he easily wove his way through the onslaught. Freed from her need to defend, Homura took advantage of every opening, raining down arrows upon the Titan as it attacked futilely, lighting up the sky with a display of purple bursts. The Titan fell back. Even with Homura and Pegasus hasted, the Tornado Titan still had the speed of the wind, and now it was using that speed to put some distance between itself and them.  
  
As the duo came in for another run, things went wrong. First, the Haste spell wore off. Then, they barely managed to dodge a blast of lava, only to run headlong into a massive blast of wind. The wind caught Pegasus’ wings, sending him careening through the air, and Homura falling off his back. She was sent spirally through the air, attempting to grab on to anything, but was unable to stop herself from slamming into the ground.

* * *

When Homura's head stopped swimming and her eyesight unblurred, the first thing she realized was how absolutely cold she was. The second thing she realized was that she couldn’t move. She was encased in ice, at the edge of the acropolis.  
  
With her blurry vision through the frost, she could see the battle still raging.  
  
Then she saw a pair of well shaped legs alight down in front of her. Unlike everything else, they were clear to her vision. The Devil knelt down, her face perfectly visible through the ice.  
  
“Well, I believe the proper term to use here is ‘bit off more than she could chew’ if I am correct?”  
  
Homura struggled to say something, though the ice was too thick, and she could only shiver slightly.  
  
“‘Just like Witches’ my ass. Have you forgotten? You never were all that good in a fight without your ability to stop time. I believe fixing the world blurred those memories.” The Devil mocked.  
  
Homura grit her teeth trying to reply, but again, she couldn’t move.  
  
“So it is only a matter of time. Either you freeze to death, anticlimactically, or a stray shot ends you. And then your grand quest for the sake of dearest Madoka comes to an end. Never to know if she lives or not. What a waste. But what else can you expect?”  
  
Homura snarled at those words. But she was still helpless.  
  
“Oh, so there is still some fire in you!” The Devil smirked. “But not enough. _I was_ the one who finally triumphed. _I was_ the one, who brought low the foul rats. _I was_ the one who freed Madoka from the clutches of the Goddess. _I was_ the one who broke the cursed cycle of the Puella Magi. And so it stands that I must be the one to put an end to this battle.”  
  
The Devil placed her hand on Homura’s and her vision became filled with violet flames.

* * *

“Homura!” When Sora saw her hit the ground, and then become frozen solid by a blast of cold immediately afterwards, his heart sank. He and Goofy rushed towards her, intending to free her, only for the Ice Titan to stomp it’s way into their path. “Get out of the way!”  
  
The Titan instead roared. Sora ducked behind Goofy’s shield as the Titan exhaled it’s frigid breath. When the barrage stopped, now there was a wall of ice cutting him off from Homura.  
  
“ _No!_ ”  
  
Suddenly, from behind the wall, Sora saw an explosion of violet fire. The Ice Titan turned in confusion, only to get blasted in the face and knocked off its feet.  
  
Sora saw Homura rise into the air, although she was different now. Her outfit had been replaced with a black dress, backless to allow for a pair of black wings that carried her aloft. Violet flames danced all around her as her body seemed to flicker, almost like static on a television. Her bow was still in her hand, though now, violet fire crackled at both ends of the weapon.  
  
The Ice Titan swung its arm and released a barrage of icicles. Deftly dodging the attack, Homura retaliated with another massive blast of flame in the shape of a fist. The Ice Titan attempted to block the attack, but was nearly knocked off its feet by the sheer force of the blow.  
  
As the Ice Titan slid back, Homura was about to go in for the final shot, when the Tornado Titan intervened. A massive cloudy fist struck her in an uppercut, knocking her high into the air again.

* * *

The Devil laughed as she soared through the sky, the Tornado Titan in pursuit. She knew from that blow that the Tornado Titan was no match for her; though Homura had been struggled against its hurricane-force wind attacks, they might have been a calm sea breeze to the Devil. The Titan shot rending gusts of wind and hurled chunks of debris at her. They were answered with barrages of burning arrows as the Devil soared through the chaos.  
  
The Titan simply couldn’t keep up with her, aided by accelerated time as she was, and each shot blasted off parts of the Titan. Its attacks, which the weakling Homura had barely managed to keep up with, were easy to avoid now. She idly wondered why the others didn't defer to her at all times. After all, they were all failures. The girl, a pathetic coward broken by the world and afraid of her own shadow. The Puella Magi, slavishly devoted to a quest she had no hope of succeeding at. The witch, a pathetic creature unable to do any more than weep at a world she was powerless in. The Devil clearly was the only one who stood a chance of finally ending this sordid saga.  
  
The Tornado Titan pulled out all the stops, as it lifted enormous chunks of the city into the air, hurling the about wildly. When a building was hurled at the Devil, she gestured, and a massive pair of glowing hands emerged, grabbed the building, and hurled it back at the Titan.  
  
Even that wasn't enough to kill it, to her frustration. The Devil dodged her way through another barrage of debris, before flying high into the sky.  
  
 **“ Let us end this!**” She said, as she held her hand up into the air, drawing upon the greater magic she had access to now. “ ** _Comet!_** ”  
  
A rock burning with violet flames came streaking down from the sky, striking the Wind Titan head on with a deafening impact.  
  
The Titan was smashed into the ground while engulfed in dark flames, momentarily dispersing into a shapeless cloud, before reconstituting into a humanoid shape. As the Devil descended she noted that the others had dealt with the remaining 2 titans, and they were currently sprawled out on the ground.  
  
“Wow! Homura! Is that you?” Sora asked. “You look awesome!”  
  
The Devil ignored him. She was about raise a cry of triumph, of praise to her awesome glory, when the ground shook. She looked over, to see the Rock Titan, of all things, striding towards them. As it approached, the other Titans stirred, rising from where they lay.  
  
The Devil sighed. “ **I grow weary of this conflict.** ”  
  
“Then let’s end this once and for all!” Hercules said. He leaped upon the mound of stone in the center and began to pry it open.  
  
A golden light shone forth from the cracks, and then the top of the pillar exploded, Zeus burst free from his prison.  
  
“ _NOOOOOOOOO!_ ” Hades howled.  
  
“Thank you, my boy!” Zeus said. As he said that, Hephaestus tossed a batch of thunderbolts to the newly liberated King of the Gods. “Now, watch your old man work!”  
  
“ _Uh oh..._ ” One of the Titans said.  
  
It was a blinding display. A single bolt blasted one of the Rock Titan’s heads completely off, with a second taking the other in short order. At this demonstration of power, the Titans began to flee without hesitation.  
  
They didn’t get far. Hercules leaped towards the Tornado Titan and grabbed it by the base of the funnel. He swung the creature around, and used it to suck up the other three Titans. Then, he hurled all four of them clear out of the atmosphere and right into space, where they exploded in a brilliant burst of light.  
  
Outside, the other gods were mopping up the remaining Heartless. The fight was over.  
  
“We did it!” Sora, Donald and Goofy exchanged high fives.  
  
The Devil stood away from the group, observing the proceedings.  
  
“We won! Everyone’s safe!” A voice behind her said. She turned to see Akemi, for once smiling. Stupid girl. They didn’t matter.  
  
“ ** _I_ won!**” The Devil said. “ **You were useless, as usual. And none of these distractions matter if we do not find out if my lovely Madoka still lives.** ”  
  
Akemi shrunk away at those words, but then said. “They’re not distractions!”  
  
“ **Are they now?** ” The Devil said. “ **I would beg to differ!** ”  
  
“What do you mean?” Said another voice. Homura approached, clambering over a large chunk of stone.  
  
“ **Why get involved in that whole climactic battle at all? Hades was waiting at the side of the arena the entire time. We could have questioned him at any time and then been on our merry way. But you wanted to play Hero.** ” The Devil snarled. These girls were idiots. Her old selves were weak, beaten down by the world, and to afraid to strike back. “ **And nearly got killed in the process requiring me to get the job done! Heroics are pointless. You remember Sayaka Miki right? That fool girl blinded by her own ego. You remember how she kept wanting to be a "Hero of Justice" or some sort of nonsense, and then breaks when she realizes how foolish those goals are? Pointless.** ”  
  
“Pointless? The people love Hercules!” Akemi said.  
  
The Devil kicked aside a few stones revealing an action figure of Hercules. She picked up the toy, turning it over in her hands. “ **These things are everywhere. In houses, on shop stalls, by the side of the road, in garbage piles. They love their celebrity of the moment. Place him on billboards, merchandise, statues. But fame fades, adoration fades. They just want amusement. A toy. Heroics are a fools game. You remember Mami Tomoe right? How she craved admiration and got killed grandstanding. How Madoka kept leading herself to ruin, all playing into the loathsome hands of the Incubator.** ”  
  
"Are you serious?! You're dishonoring her! Forgetting the reason why she-" The Devil slapped Akemi, knocking off her glasses.  
  
" **I am _saving_ her! Madoka was too naive. She didn't understand the world. I do! This world does not deserve her kindness! It is rotten to the core and the few good people are dragged down into the mire with it. We must drill that into her head or that gorgeous, ignorant, _wonderful_ , naive, girl will keep tearing herself apart for the benefit of those who will never be grateful for her sacrifice!**" The Devil snarled. " **Now, I have a mission to complete. As it seems that I am the only one among us capable of remaining on task and not getting waylaid by foolhardy sentiment, as usual I must clean up everyone else's failures. Or have you forgotten what you did to Sora?** "  
  
Even Homura flinched at those words, while Akemi sobbed and ran away. Good riddance. The Devil looked at the toy one last time before lighting it on fire. The Devil was about to step forwards to join the others, when a sudden pain shot through her. Her body flickered. “ ** _No._** ” The Devil grit her teeth, and forced herself forwards. She still had work to do.  
  
“Are you kidding me?! I put _18 years_ into that plan, and you’ve blippin’ ruined it!” Hades raged. “I _really_ don’t like you!”  
  
“Just give it up!” Sora said. “You’ll never beat Herc no matter how many times you try.”  
  
“Yeah, stay in the Underworld where you belong!”  
  
“Go have the time of your afterlife!” Donald joked.  
  
“ _ **ENOUGH ALREADY!**_ I did not come this far to be ridiculed by Zeusy high and mighty, his little sunspot and a gaggle of _clowns_!” Hades’ flames erupted in a burst of raging orange. “You know what? I’ll just go ahead and destroy you!”  
  
“Hades?” Hercules asked calmly.  
  
“ _What?!_ ” Hades turned, only for Hercules to punch him in the face, sending him sprawling across the ground.  
  
“That’s for trying to wreck Thebes.”  
  
His flames diminished, before flaring up again. “You’ll pay for this! I have a very, very, long memory! I can still dunk your little nut-meg in a river of de-”  
  
Smoke began to surround him, only to be disrupted by a circle of violet fire.  
  
He looked up as the Devil approached him. “And what do you want?”  
  
“ **Hades.** ” the Devil said imperiously. “ **You are lord of the underworld, ruler of the dead. You can know if a soul has perished, regardless of world. Tell me, has the one known as Madoka Kaname passed?** ”  
  
Hades blinked several times, looking a little shocked. His flames reverted to their normal blue color. “Nope, nu-uh, doesn’t ring a bell. That check is still in the mail. Are we done here!” With that, he disappeared a puff of smoke and hellfire.  
  
 _So she’s alive._ The Devil breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
She turned to Sora who was smiling encouragingly at her, only for her vision to flicker. As she looked at her self her body began to warp. The Devil screamed in pain before collapsing to the ground, her sight fading to black.

* * *

****

_So the Olympus Arc is wrapping to a close. It should be finished in the next chapter, and then we can return to Madoka and co.  
  
As always, thanks to [The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!  
  
~Dragonexx_


	21. Imposter

[The city was in ruins.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARSpkaprwwU) The looming shadow of Walpurgisnacht bore down upon it, a mad jester leering at the carnage, suffering, and death it had inflicted. So many lives were lost, including her friend Mami Tomoe.

“Well, I better get going.” Madoka said calmly.

“But… Miss Tomoe… that thing killed her!”

“I know, but someone has to stop Walpurgisnacht, and I’m the only one left who can.”

“No! You can’t beat it by yourself, it’s too strong! It’ll kill you too, Miss Kaname!”

“Even so, I have to protect everyone. It’s my job. I’m a magical girl.”

“Please… We can run away… I mean, this is hopeless! No one would blame you if you did, Miss Kaname!” Homura begged and pleaded. Madoka was everything to her. She couldn’t lose her too!

“Homura. It’s okay. I’m glad I got to become friends with you. Saving you from that Witch was the best thing I ever did. And I’m always going to be proud of that. Y’see? That’s why, in the end, I’m glad I got to become a Magical Girl. I really am!”

“Miss Kaname...”

“Goodbye, Homura! Take care!” She smiled gently, that smile that signaled her doom. She leaped off into the distance, towards the Witch, as a blinding light shone forth, while Homura could only scream.

“Wait! Don’t go! MISS KANAME!”

* * *

Homura awoke, to find herself lying on some sort of altar. Standing over her was a purple skinned man. One of the gods, she remembered. And then she recalled where she was. Olympus.

“What happened?”

“You passed out. But don’t worry, you have been granted the honor of being healed by Apollo, god of medicine!” The purple skinned man said dramatically. “Though I must say, your anatomy is a bit unusual. But, I suppose that’s what to expect from an offworlder! Doctor’s recommendation: You should get more sleep.”

“I’ll take it into consideration.” Homura said flatly.

"Ah well, time to join in the celebrations! Dionysus is breaking out the good stuff!” He shrugged, and walked away. As he did, Homura sat up. The sun had set, and it was night. If anything, Olympus looked even more beautiful after dark. Beneath a starry sky, the gods danced about, glowing with lights of their own as they flew from island to island, celebrating their victory.

“Homura! You’re okay!” She heard a familiar voice, and turned to see Sora approaching her.

“Yes, it seems.” She stood up, and looked around. “Where are the others?”

“Donald and Goofy are joining the party. Hercules went back down to Thebes to be with Meg.”

“He’s not staying up here with the gods?”

“Nope. He said: ‘I can visit my family anytime I want. If I stayed, I’d have to be apart from the person I love most… And that life would be empty.’ Or something like that.”

“Empty...” Homura pondered.

“But enough of that, look!” Sora pointed excitedly into the air. Homura followed his direction, looking straight up.

There, she saw a constellation depicting Sora, Donald, and Goofy. Even as she marveled at this, she saw the stars moving through the sky, arranging themselves into another pattern. Hercules. She recalled in some of the myths of the gods creating constellations to honor heroes forever. Well, Hercules certainly deserved one.

But then, to her surprise, it didn’t stop there. The stars were still moving. At first, she was confused, but then utterly shocked. The stars were arranging into a constellation of _herself!_ She gasped in awe, though soon, her heart felt heavy.

Now that the fighting was over, she had time to think. To find the truth. They thought she was a hero… but… she wasn’t one. She wasn’t brave or compassionate. She hadn’t set out to save any of them. She had only joined up with the others for her own selfish goals, and then blundered her way into success. She was a nothing girl. No family. No past. No future. She did not deserve success, thus she had to break the laws of the World in order to cheat her way to a semblance of victory.

“Haha! That’s amazing! Congratulations Homura!” Sora grabbed Homura’s hands and spun her around, dancing.

But she wanted this… this connection, this friendship. Even though it was brief, traveling with Sora, Donald and Goofy had brought to her a happiness she hadn’t felt in years. They were courageous, yet compassionate. Confident, yet not afraid to be silly as well. It reminded her of the times she had fought alongside Madoka and the others. Those few and precious timelines where they had all been friends.

 _The dread chill that washed over her at the sound of the rockslide and Sora’s cry of fear as the boulders came crashing down upon him._

 _“Say Homura, could it be that Madoka’s potential to become the most powerful magical girl is_ because _you kept turning back time?”_

Homura flinched, and let go of Sora. She looked up at her constellation again. It didn’t deserve to be so honored. It was a monument to falsehood and deceit. She was a liar, a killer, a violator, a monster. So many people she had hurt, so many lives she had ruined in pursuit of her selfish goals.

 _“I don’t have much left, but this is thanks for saving me! You were amazing! I hope I can be brave like you someday!”_

She wasn’t brave. She was a coward, a weakling, a selfish unwanted girl who desired things she should never have.

She thought back to the what everyone had said.

 _“Hmm… that’s a tough one. All I knew was that she was in trouble. Suddenly, I wanted to save her with all my heart, but… it’s not like I could tell you how.”_

 _“Heroes never quit!”_

 _“Yeah, we fight with all our heart!”_

 _“I can visit my family anytime I want. If I stayed, I’d have to be apart from the person I love most… And that life would be empty.”_

The conclusion was clear.

“I’m leaving now.”

“What?!” Sora asked.

“I can’t stay with you. If I am to find Madoka, then I must focus on her to the exclusion of all else. My own wants, my own desires, they cannot factor into it. They are dangerous distractions.”

“But… I can help you find Madoka! We work so well together! With all of us, we’ll find Madoka for sure!”

“Sora, the time I spent with you all. It’s been great, but… that’s why I have to leave. This… is not the kind of person I can be. I’m so sorry. I’m no hero. You deserve better.”

“But you are! Is this about the rockslide? It’s not a big deal! I don’t blame you!”

“And that’s why I must leave you.” Homura felt a pain in her chest. She realized she was fighting back tears. “I wish you well on your journey. You’ll be better off without me.”

She turned so he wouldn’t see her cry. She wanted to stay, so badly. But pursuing her own happiness always made things worse. What right did she have to such things considering all she was and all she had done? What mattered was saving Madoka. She was alive, which meant that she was out there somewhere, lost and in danger. Madoka had a loving family and a bright future. Madoka was the one who deserved happiness, not a freak like herself. Every part of her being had to be devoted to that task. Anything less was a betrayal. Her adventure here had taught her that.

She heard a strange sound. When she looked up, she saw a dark vortex forming. That meant it was time for her to go. Her time here was over.

* * *

This was interesting. Very interesting. Xigbar didn’t know the whole story, but this girl was quite a find. Though also concerning. Xehanort had unearthed a real gem, though he still wasn’t entirely sure what her purpose was. On the surface she looked like your average teenage girl with magical powers. Nothing he hadn’t seen a million times before on a million worlds. But there were so many interesting things beneath the surface.

He had quickly returned to base and questioned Young Xehanort. The smug punk was condescending as usual, and only revealed that Homura was involved with one of the new Princesses, who had also gone missing. But if that was the case, then why would the old man see to it himself? Finding a lost Princess might be a difficult quest, but there were plenty of other members of the organization who could perform it in his stead.

No, there had to be more to this story than was being let on. Xehanort was moving so incredibly hasty here, he hadn’t even bothered to check where Sora was before sending the girl to Olympus. It was unlike his usually meticulous self.

This Homura was certainly a strange one herself. There was a lot of darkness within her, though it took a form he hadn’t seen before. That transformation she had performed was full of curiosities.

Thankfully, she seemed to be leaving Sora of her own volition. He had his role to play, and Xigbar didn’t want Homura driving him off-script.

But now, the million Munny question: Was _Xehanort_ still on script? He had to find out for sure, but he couldn’t raise the old coots suspicions. As far as he knew, Braig was just a man obsessed with the Keyblade and willing to go to any lengths to have one.

More observation was necessary. Perhaps he could track down the errant Princess before anyone else did. That might answer some questions. But that was a journey and a half itself. Ah well, he’d been at this for ages, no use getting impatient now.

* * *

  
“So why are we still here?” Pete asked, as he followed Maleficent. From all accounts their business in this World was finished. There had been a moment of hope when he had unearthed the box, but according to Maleficent, it was the _wrong box_. Apparently, that right box would have some sort of ‘Book of Prophecies’ in it. He didn’t see what was so important about it. Pete rarely read. Books were for nerds after all.

However, it did seem highly important to Maleficent. But if it it wasn’t here, then why were they still on this World? Especially in the realm of the gods?

“ _Silence, fool. I am observing._ ” Maleficent snapped as she looked out the window of the building the two of them were currently in.

“Observing what?” Pete stepped over to the window and then gasped. It was the black-haired girl from earlier!

“W-why are you obs-s-serving h-her?” He stammered.

“ _She intrigues me..._ ”

“Really? To me she’s… she’s…” Pete remembered the distorted voice, glowing eyes, and unnatural flames. “ _Scary..._ ”

Maleficent snarled. “ _If I wanted your opinion, I would ask for it!_ ”

“S-sorry!” Pete shrunk away. Why did she always have to be so mean? “It’s just, what’s so intriguing about her anyways?”

“ _Plenty of things. Her abilities are so very fascinating. She could be_ very _useful._ ”

“Useful for what? I thought we were going after that book? Does she know where it is?”

“ _Not likely. However, I have many schemes, and it always helps to have more than one fuse lit._ ”

Maleficent chuckled as she opened a Dark Corridor and walked inside. Pete shuffled dejectedly after her. “Aww man. She never tells me anything!”

* * *

“No! Homura, that’s not true!”

Homura’s words filled him with dread, but even worse was what he could sense around her. Wisps of darkness swirled about Homura as she spoke. He was about to warn her when something even worse appeared. A Corridor of Darkness appeared out of the blue. He dropped into a fighting stance, expecting an Organization member to emerge. But none did. The portal just stood there. What was happening?

“What’s going on?” He heard footsteps, and turned to see Homura walking to the portal. “Homura! Don’t go in there! Homura!”

But she said nothing. She paid his words no heed. She didn’t turn around. The Corridor closed and she was gone.

* * *

Homura marched through the darkness. It had been hard, but now, she could focus on what really mattered. The Devil, for all her arrogance, was correct. The last few years in her perfect world had softened her, made her forget how to concentrate on a goal and pursue it no matter what, her only redeeming quality. She supposed she could have thanked Sora and his friends for reminding her of that, but that was just a distraction. Eyes filled with determination, Homura kept walking.

 _“You, Homura Akemi, are a demon!”_

Homura stopped and stared. A silhouette appeared in the distance, drawing ever close. Out of the gloom stepped Sayaka Miki. She wore her Puella Magi costume, a blue and white corset and miniskirt, mixed with thigh-high stockings, elbow gloves, and a flowing cape.

She held out her hand, and suddenly a cutlass was in her grip, pointed at Homura.

“I warned you! I told you this was bad! You’ve broken the Law of Cycles! You’ve ruined everything!” As she spoke, a greater shadow formed behind her. A gigantic mermaid clad in knights armor took shape. “Our salvation is lost because of you! You really are a devil!”

Homura took a step back. But then she realized that, this too, was a distraction. So she grit her teeth and kept walking.

“You took away our powers! Our knowledge! Left the world vulnerable!” Mami emerged from the darkness, also in her costume. Her arms were replace with tentacle-like ribbons, each gripping muskets pointed at Homura. “You put everyone in danger and look what happened!”

Homura remained silent as she kept walking.

“You took away my happiness. My peace!” Nagisa appeared next to Mami, also in her costume. Her face was white and clown like, with razor sharp yellow teeth. “And for what? So you could play god? Who gave you the right?!”

The Sweets Witch slithered out of Nagisa’s human form like a snake shedding its skin. It leered at Homura hungrily, its saliva dripping onto Homura’s shoulder.

Homura flicked the drool off of her and kept walking.

“Traitor!” This time Kyoko, however, her red hair was now literally fire. She rode atop a blazing nightmare horse and pointed her spear at Homura. “You never cared about any of us! You’ve just made everything worse!”

Homura suppressed the urge to flinch as she kept walking.

“Monster!”

“Liar!”

“Demon!”

“You ruined my life!”

“You killed everyone!”

“You’ll pay for this!”

“This is all your fault!”

The accusations rang loudly through the darkness over, and over. More warped and distorted Puella Magi appeared, ones she barely recalled. They emerged from the shadows, their expressions hateful and their voices accusatory as they approached her.

Homura remained silent and kept walking. They weren’t real. She kept repeating to herself over and over, even as her lip trembled. They weren’t real.

“Crack baby! Crack baby!”

“Nobody loves you!”

“Freak!”

“Failure!”

“Good-for-nothing!”

“What can you expect from someone like her though?”

This time, it was her classmates from her old private school, before she moved to Mitakihara. They wore their fancy uniforms and had the faces of Clara dolls. They mocked her, ridiculed her. One of them even hurled a tomato, at her. The others followed suit, laughing and pelting her with fruit.

Clenching her fists, Homura ignored the barrage kept walking, only to find her progress stopped. The crowd had formed a circle around her, blocking her escape. Their accusations and insults were gone now, replaced with a dead silence. Footsteps could be heard in the distance. The crowd parted. A feeling of unearthly dread came over Homura as she heard those steps, drawing ever so closer. She prayed that what she feared wouldn’t happen. She was let down.

Madoka Kaname stepped through the crowd. As she approached Homura, dark splotches covered her body, staining her pink dress black. Her arms elongated and turned into tentacles that dragged along the ground.

“Madoka… Please don’t… I just wanted you to be happy! Please don’t.” Homura begged. Her strength faltered. Her legs felt weak. She collapsed to her knees, pleading over and over. “I did this for you.”

“For me? _For me?_ You think I wanted this? You think I wanted everything you cursed me with? What’s _wrong_ with you?" Madoka’s voice was barely more than whisper, though it might as well have been the howling of a Titan to Homura’s ears. "I never should have saved you. It was the worst mistake I ever made. _I hate you!_ ”

The crowd picked up again, their accusations and mockery drowning out Homura’s protests. She covered her ears, but the noise grew louder and crueler. Finally, she took off running, closing her eyes and screaming at the top of her lungs. Where she was going she neither knew nor cared. She screamed and screamed until her throat was raw, and then she screamed more. Soon all the voices were drowned out. Eventually, she found she couldn’t scream any more. She ran until she couldn’t any longer. When she opened her eyes, she was alone in the void. The fruit stains were gone. None of the Puella Magi appeared to accuse her. None of her other selves arrived to mock and deride her. There was only the endless writhing darkness.

Homura realized at that moment that she had tripped and fallen while she was running. How clumsy of her. Picking herself up, she dried her tears and kept walking.

And she kept walking.

And she kept walking.

And she kept walking...

* * *

 ****

* * *

_Thanks to[The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!_

 _~Dragonexx_


	22. Twilight's View

[Madoka smiled](https://youtu.be/TV0uYFPEkks). Her mother worked late tonight, but not too late, so they were lucky that she didn’t have to miss dinner. The entire family came together to enjoy dad’s cooking: grilled fish and rice in a lemon sauce! Yum!  
  
“So? How was school today?” Tomohisa asked his daughter.  
  
After swallowing a big bite, Madoka launched into her explanation. “Well, it started off kinda normal, there was this thing between Sayaka and Hitomi about Kyosuke, and it was upsetting a bit, but then I got to have lunch with Homura. That was really fun, and it really picked up my mood.”  
  
“Ever since she transferred, it seems like that Homura is the only thing on your mind.” Her father said.  
  
“Ham-rah! Ham-rah!” Tatsuya said as he picked at the rice.  
  
“And it’s spreading.” Junko said. Everyone laughed a bit at that.  
  
“I guess, she’s just so fun to be around. We hit it off really well and really understand each other! We have so much in common! She's so sweet and kind. She’s really great. I like her a lot!”  
  
“I’d like to meet her.” Junko said. “Why don’t you invite her over for dinner tomorrow?”  
  
“Yeah, that sounds like an excellent idea!” Tomohisa said.  
  
“Well… we uh... already have plans tomorrow...”  
  
“Oh?” Junko gave a sly grin. “So you’re already dating?”  
  
Madoka’s blushed hard. “N-no, it’s not like that! She was in the hospital for a long time, and missed a lot of school, so she’s really struggling in her classes. So we’re going to go to the library to study and help her catch up!”  
  
“Still sounds like a date to me! As you peruse through the books, thinking the other’s thoughts are on the material, only to reach for something at the same time. Your hands touch, and you meet each other's gaze, only to see the passion blazing in their eyes and-”  
  
“ _Mama!_ ” Madoka was certain that her entire face had turned as pink as her hair. There was a moment of silence, before everyone at the table laughed, even Tatsuya.  
  
“If you think that’s risque, you should hear how your father and I met.”  
  
“I don’t think either of them are old enough for that.” Tomohisa chided his wife in a half-serious manner..  
  
“What’s that mean?” Madoka asked.  
  
“When your older.” Both her parents said with a wink and grin towards each other. That really sent Madoka’s mind spiraling with all the possibilities.  
  
Fortunately, it was all forgotten when Tatsuya suddenly shouted. “Risky! Risky!”  
  
“Also a word for when your older.” Tomohisa said, and everyone laughed again.  
  
The rest of the meal continued, with Junko talking about her day and then Tomohisa related his experience of taking Tatsuya to his doctor appointment. After the meal was finished, Madoka found herself yawning.  
  
“It is pretty late.” Tomohisa said. “We all need our rest.”  
  
“And you don’t want to be tired for your date with Homura tomorrow!”  
  
“Mama! It’s not a date!” Madoka protested, but Junko only grinned in response as she headed towards her bedroom.  
  
Madoka went to hers and quickly changed into her pajamas. As she climbed into bed she wondered if the term 'date' was more appropriate than she initially believed. Despite all the joking, Madoka had to admit that she couldn’t wait for tomorrow. Thoughts of spending more time with Homura softly lulled her to sleep.  
  
  


* * *

Madoka awoke, first to her usual morning tiredness, then to confusion. When she turned, she saw Sayaka asleep next to her. What was Sayaka doing in her bed? They weren’t having a sleepover, were they? She couldn’t recall anything of the sort.  
  
Then she saw another bed next to hers and noticed Mami and Nagisa were sleeping in it. Why was there another bed in her room? Then she saw the couch were Kyoko was snoring away on. She didn’t have a couch in her room either. But… this wasn’t her room. It was a hotel room. Where were Mama and Papa?  
  
As Madoka placed her hands to her head, she felt something on her cheek. And then it all came back to her. She gasped and leaped out of the bed, rushing into the bathroom to examine herself in the mirror.  
  
Sure enough, they were there. The rough scar tissue on the left side of her face. It was real. It was all real. Her family was dead. Her entire world was dead. They were on a completely different world.  
  
Madoka leaned forwards, feeling a pain in her chest. Her eyes began to blur, and she felt hot tears run down her face again. She had failed to save them. She had run off without telling Papa, and now he and Tatsuya were dead.  
  
The tears didn’t last as long as yesterday, and she managed to force herself back up. After wiping her eyes, she noticed a shadow. She turned to see Nagisa standing at the entrance of the bathroom.  
  
“You’re awake?” Madoka asked.  
  
“You were crying again.” The younger girl observed.  
  
“It’s fine… I’m fine.” Madoka said. She tried to inject confidence into her voice, but was certain that she failed miserably.  
  
Nagisa rushed over to Madoka and embraced her.  
  
“T-thanks.” Madoka leaned over and returned the hug.  
  
“We can go wake up Sayaka.” Nagisa said.  
  
“No. Please, don’t tell her.”  
  
“Why? You don’t look well.”  
  
“I’m just groggy, and I don’t want to worry anyone needlessly. I’m fine. Promise.”  
  
Nagisa didn’t look convinced, but nodded.  
  
“Your hair is a mess.” Madoka said. “Want me to comb it?”  
  
“I would love that.”  
  
They pulled up some chairs and Madoka got to work. It was fairly relaxing, all things considered, and Nagisa seemed to like the sensation, leaning back as Madoka ran the comb and brush through her long white hair. Madoka felt a twinge of jealousy. She wished she could pull off long hair like Nagisa’s. And then again, her thoughts turned to Homura. She had nice hair too. She had also come up again in her dream. And it sounded like they were… friends? Maybe more than that? Again, it had felt so real. Like a memory more than a dream.  
  
But, they weren’t that close in reality. They had barely spoken to each other until the Heartless attacked. Homura was an enemy in real life. Though, even there, looking back, she had seemed so very sad. It bothered Madoka in a way she wasn’t sure how to explain.  
  
“Hey, Madoka?” Nagisa asked, drawing Madoka out of her pondering.  
  
“Yes?”  
  
“What do you think about all this?”  
  
“What do you mean?”  
  
“Like, all the things that have happened recently. It’s been only a day for us, but a few more for you.”  
  
“It’s… all so big. I honestly don’t know what to think. At first, all I had on my mind was summer vacation. I’d be hanging out with you guys, going on a trip with my family. And now...” Madoka paused.  
  
“Too bad it couldn’t have happened earlier in the year.” Nagisa quickly said.  
  
“Why?”  
  
“Because if were going to save the world, at the least it could come with an excuse to skip school!” She laughed. “Now we have to waste our vacation days.”  
  
“Yeah, I really needed a break back then.” Madoka said, laughing along with her. There was another moment of silence, before Nagisa spoke again.  
  
“You know? At least, if we have to travel around the multiverse to save our World, the five of us still get to be together.”  
  
“Yeah. I guess that’s one silver lining.” Madoka said. She finished working out all the tangles in Nagisa’s hair, and did up her pigtails. “All done!”  
  
As she said those words, she heard sounds from the bedroom. The others were waking up.  
  
“Madoka?” She heard Sayaka ask. “Madoka? Where are you?”  
  
She sounded worried. Both of them hurried out of the bathroom.  
  
“Right here!” Madoka said. “We were just doing our hair.”  
  
“Ah. Good idea! If you don’t mind...” Mami said.  
  
“Nah, go ahead!” Sayaka said. “Mine’s simple. I won’t take long.”  
  
“Mine won’t take long either.” Mami said as she entered and closed the door behind her.  
  
Mami’s preferred hairstyle was more complex than the others in their group, though she always seemed to pull it off so perfectly. Madoka supposed she must have had a lot of practice.  
  
“Madoka… how are you feeling?”  
  
“I’m fine.” She said. This time it sounded more convincing. At least the puffiness of her eyes had worn off. “How’d you sleep last night?”  
  
“Alright. You?”  
  
“Just fine. Some normal dreams.” Madoka said. She didn’t like lying, but making Sayaka worry felt worse.  
  
“And done!” Mami said. She stepped out of the bathroom fully dressed, and with her hair already done in it’s fancy drill style. Perfect, as usual.  
  
“Yeah, were about ready to get moving ourselves.” Sayaka said.  
  
“Well… most of us it seems.” Nagisa said, looking at Kyoko still snoring on the couch.  
  
“Still asleep?” Madoka asked.  
  
“Well, then I guess we’ll just have to go on without her.” Mami said.  
  
“What?!” Everyone exclaimed.  
  
Mami gave a gentle smile that still seemed to hold a hint of mischief. “Oh, don’t worry, we’ll come back for her. After we’ve eaten breakfast!”  
  
“Wha-what? Breakfast? I’m up, I’m up!” Kyoko shouted.  
  


* * *

  
  
The void seemed to go on forever. The darkness felt thick, almost like pushing through a patch of very tall grass. In spite of this, Homura forged on through the gloom until the miasma faded. She then found herself standing in a very bizarre location.  
  
She was on a balcony that was part of a massive [white castle](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZtCgmDhJuk). The entire location looked incredibly eerie. The castle was oddly shaped, and bone white. Strangely shaped towers jutted out of it from it like the fingers of a skeleton.  
  
Looking up, she saw a sky obscured by red clouds. Beneath that was a sprawling modern city, so large she couldn’t see the edge of it, lit by glowing neon lights and LED signs. The castle she was in appeared to float weightlessly over a glowing green pit in the center of the city.  
  
“So… welcome to the World that Never Was!” A voice said behind her.  
  
Homura turned to see a man in a black coat. He was middle-aged, with numerous scars on his face. One of his eyes was yellow, while the other was covered in an eye-patch. His graying hair was tied back in a ponytail, and his ears were slightly pointed.  
  
“Who are you?”  
  
“The name’s Xigbar. Welcome to the Organization.”  
  


* * *

Even up close, this girl didn’t look like much, but he had seen her in action. There was definitely a lot of power hidden beneath that unassuming surface.  
  
“So, how was you’re little excursion on Olympus? Did you find what you needed? Action? Excitement? Any twists in the tale?” He already knew the answer, but her reaction would be informative.  
  
“Madoka is alive.” Homura replied flatly.  
  
“Ah! Some good news! Congratulations!” Xigbar cheered.  
  
“Where is Xehanort?” She asked, looking away.  
  
“Dunno where the old coot’s gotten off to, but you have me to keep you company! How’s about a treat to celebrate your success! I think there’s some sea-salt ice cream somewhere here...”  
  
“Not interested.” Came Homura’s flat reply. “If she’s alive, I need to get going.”  
  
No emotion. Or, more accurately to say, guarded emotions. Suppressed beneath the surface. She had been very expressive at times on Olympus, mostly in the presence of Sora or when alone, but that was probably a given considering whom she was traveling with. As much as Xigbar hated to admit it, Sora’s ability to connect with others was awe-inspiring. But that wasn’t part of the plan. Sora had his own Hearts to connect to, and Xigbar’s job was to make sure he and everybody else stayed on track.  
  
  


* * *

“Hey, why with the hastiness?” Xigbar said, he then grinned nonchalantly. “Don’t you want to meet the other members? Granted, many of them are out on missions, but there’s currently a few here right now.”  
  
Homura resisted the urge to roll her eyes. This guy came across like someone way too old trying to present themselves as ‘one of the kids’. She’d seen his type before, and their kindness was alway fake. Still, she supposed humoring him wouldn’t hurt. “Fine,” she sighed.  
  
“Right this way.” He gestured, leading her through several hallways. As they walked, Homura’s skeleton comparisons felt more and more apt. The entire castle felt skeletal. There didn’t seem to be much in the way of decorations, only the strange symbol that appeared to be a cross mixed with an inverted heart. There were no paintings, no plants, tapestries, vases, statues, or any other sorts of luxuries. It was entirely minimal. Sterile. This place was clearly constructed with a purpose in mind, function over form. In that way, it reminded her of her old apartment, the one she had lived in before the Goddess subsumed Madoka. She’d discarded such trivial notions as aesthetics to focus on her quest. Perhaps those that designed this place thought similarly, she mused.  
  
Eventually, Xigbar led her to what appeared to be some sort of lounge. Here, there was furniture, though it was the same white color as the rest of the castle and extremely minimal in its design. Even the potted flowers were completely white.  
  
There were three other occupants of the room, all wearing black coats like Xigbar. One was a man with long dirty blonde hair. He was sitting at a couch looking intently at a holographic screen displaying scientific data of some kind. He didn’t appear to react to Homura’s arrival. On the other side of the room was a woman with bright blonde hair, reclining on a sofa. She was casually tossing a yellow dagger back and forth between her hands. The third was a dark skinned young man with silver hair, looking about the same age as Homura or maybe a little older. He was currently staring out the window, seemingly paying no attention to went on behind him. Homura turned to see that Xigbar had apparently vanished before turning back to the others.  
  
“So, whose brat is this?” The woman said, turning towards Homura.  
  
“I would assume it’s a new member. Obviously.” Said the man, sounding irritated at being interrupted from his studies.  
  
“Ugh, where do they find them all? A kid? Seriously?” The blonde woman said. She looked at her with an expression of disgust like Homura was something nasty she had stepped in. It unpleasantly reminded her of the kids at Homura’s school before Mitakihara. “You don’t look like much.”  
  
Homura decidedly instantly that she disliked her. But she wasn’t about to start an argument and give her the satisfaction she probably wanted.  
  
“What, got nothing to say, or are you not even capable of talking? They really must be scraping the bottom of the barrel here if they’re bringing in some loser like you!”  
  
Now Homura _really_ didn’t like her. She turned away from the blonde girl and headed towards the boy staring out the window.  
  
“ _Hey!_ Don’t ignore me!”  
  
“Will you keep it down, Larxene? Some of us have work to do!”  
  
“Oh like anyone really cares about your stupid project, Vexen.” Larxene shot back.  
  
“What I do is vital to ensuring a true victory. But I shouldn’t expect such a pettifogging mind like your own to understand.”  
  
“Oh wow! A grown man playing with dolls! So important!”  
  
“I rest my case.”  
  
“What’s that supposed to mean?!”  
  
Homura put them both out of her mind and approached the boy.  
  
He turned to greet her. “Can I help you?”  
  
“I’m looking for Xehanort.”  
  
“Speaking.”  
  
Homura paused at this. Though vastly apart in age, there were a lot of similarities between him and the other Xehanort. Was he a son? Grandson?  
  
“The, um… older Xehanort.”  
  
“Ah. I believe he’s in the library at the moment. I can show you the way, if you like.” Unlike the other two, this young Xehanort’s voice was even and calm, and his expression was neutral. He gestured with his hand. “Come with me.”  
  
  


* * *

  
[Despite Kyoko’s protests](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRF_2U5Tt3Q), breakfast was kept quick and simple. Everyone was anxious to get moving, to continue to the next step of their quest. They had a wizard to meet with and a lot of questions that needed answering.  
  
However, while walking through Twilight Town, they passed a structure, and a high pitched voice called out to them.  
  
“Wow, I didn’t expect to see another one here, kupo!”  
  
The group turned to see a strange creature standing in front of a stall. It was small, and furry, looking like strange mixture of cat, rabbit, bat, and fairy. Between it’s long ears was a tall antennae that connected to a fuzzy red ball.  
  
“Aww… you’re so cute!” Nagisa squeed.  
  
“That’s a Moogle.” Said a familiar voice behind them. Hayner and his friends had arrived.  
  
“My name is Elmina, kupo,” the Moogle introduced himself. “We Moogles are experts at synthesis and crafting. Some of us also run shops.”  
  
“What did you mean by… another one?” Madoka asked.  
  
“Another Keyblade Wielder, kupo!”  
  
“Wait, how did you know?”  
  
“Moogle’s eye, kupo! I can tell! May I see it?”  
  
“Um… sure.” Madoka held out her hand, and Crystal Clarity appeared in a dance of flower petals. Even now, it still felt so perfect in her grip.  
  
“Now that’s a Keyblade with a lot of potential. I wish I could help improve its power, kupo, but I’m not that skilled at Synthesis.” Elmina said.  
  
“Synthesis?” Sayaka asked. “What’s that?”  
  
“Combining magical materials to create or improve magic items, kupo. I’m not that skilled at it though. But if you’re traveling from World to World, you might meet some Moogles who are. You’ll likely come to a city called Radiant Garden at some point. The Moogle there is a master of Synthesis, kupo. Ask them.”  
  
“I’ll be sure to...”  
  
“Hey, that doesn’t mean I don’t have anything that might be able to help you on your way! I run a store, kupo! We have lots of gear, like Potions. Adventurers really need Potions!”  
  
“Potions? Okay, this really is an RPG!” Kyoko said, grinning. “Do they do what I think they do?”  
  
“Drink them and they restore your vitality, healing your injuries.”  
  
“I knew it! What else ya’ got?”  
  
“Potions are about the only concoction I have at the moment.” Elmina said. “I do have other things that might be useful for your quest.”  
  
“Like what?”  
  
“Well, for example, how are you planning on carrying all this gear in the first place, kupo?” The Moogle reached towards a shelf, and pulled out an item that looked like pouch of some sort.  
  
“Introducing the Inventory!”  
  
“Really?” Kyoko said, grinning even wider.  
  
“Top of the line of Mooglecraft, kupo! This extraspacial pouch allows you to hold much much more in it than it’s meager size would indicate. Sure, there are similar bags that can hold more, but, this keeps the necessary items at the ready.” Elmina seemed to be getting into a sort of excited ‘sales pitch’ mode. “When your fighting a Malboro and wind up poisoned, do you want to waste time rummaging through a bag for an Antidote while the toxins wreak havoc on your body, kupo? No, you’re a pragmatic adventurer! You want what you need ready to go when you need it. And thus, the Inventory! Merely indicate certain items to be prepared beforehand, and then pull them out of those slots on the go. No need for wasting precious time in the middle of combat!”  
  
“He certainly does make a good pitch.” Nagisa said.  
  
“They’re only 100 Munny apiece too! Don’t need to worry about fashion either! Stick one in an enclosed space on you and that will become the Inventory, kupo! You can use it with pockets, sleeves, cleavage, hats, bags, backpacks, satchels, pant legs, anything that could work with your style.”  
  
The Moogle clearly had them sold on it. Mami bought one for each of them, as well as several potions. As she was discussing the price with Elmina, something in the shop caught Madoka’s attention. It wasn’t anything special, just a notebook, with an accompanying set of pencils and erasers.  
  
“Something caught your eye, kupo?”  
  
“That sketchbook.” Madoka said.  
  
“Ah! Of course. I don’t see why not.” Mami said.  
  
  


* * *

As the group walked towards the train station, Madoka looked over the sketchbook. The cover had a depiction of Twilight Town’s clock tower on it. Inside the pages were blank, though the inside of the cover had a spot to place tools like pencils and erasers, which Madoka took advantage of. She then decided to try out the Inventory thing. After placing some potions into it, she also tried it with the sketchbook. Though it seemed to big for the pocket of her jacket, it surprisingly went in easy. It really was convenient.  
  
When she looked up, the group had arrived at the outside of the train station. Though this should have been pleasant, something felt off to Madoka. She felt anxious. She looked around, to see that the others were feeling uneasy as well.  
  
“Going off on your little adventure, I see.”  
  
[A raspy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqpAhI-2MPM), yet seemingly light-hearted voice filled the air, but it set off the alarm bells in Madoka’s head even more. The group turned to see a man covered head to toe in a black coat. The hood obscured his facial features, but they could tell he was smiling nonetheless.  
  
Mami put herself in front of the group. “Who are you? What do you want?”  
  
“Me? Oh I was just in town and happened to stumble upon you. Then I decided ‘why not take a look at the new Keyblade Wielder while I’m here?’ So here I am.”  
  
Pence glared at the man. “You’re from that… black coat group, right? The ones who are Sora’s enemies?”  
  
The men looked at Pence in silence, causing the young boy to take a step back in fear.  
  
The man turned to Madoka and the others. “Yeah,” the man continued in a jovial voice. “I just wanted to let you know that you shouldn’t really be heading to that Wizard’s place. He won’t lift a finger to help you out, and he’ll get you roped in to his problems. At best, you’ll get some mumbo-jumbo speech about the responsibility of a Keyblade wielder, and wouldn’t that be a waste of time?”  
  
Kyoko snarled. “Thanks for the head’s up, tall, dark and edge-lordy, but we’ll take our chances.”  
  
Even though Madoka didn’t have her Keyblade in her hand, she could still feel Crystal Clarity reacting to this man’s presence in a similar way to Maleficent. He was an enemy, one looking for an excuse to pick a fight with them. But why?  
  
“If you wanted to help your world so badly, you really ought to just come with me. Unlike that dumb old wizard, I’ve got plenty of time to help you out. Hell, I can help you find Maleficent, and we can take her out together. What do you say?” The man held out his hand towards the group.  
  
“Guys,” Hayner said to the group. “Don’t trust him. These black coat guys? They’ve hurt some of our friends. They’re just bad news. And dangerous.”  
  
Madoka nodded and turned to the cloaked man. “Sorry, but we must refuse.”  
  
She tried to bow politely, but her tension was leaking into her voice. The man put his hands on his side for a second, then shrugged. “Well, I expected that. Plan B it is!” He snapped his fingers.  
  
Madoka jumped back and yelped as several laser shots fired into the space she just was. Mami immediately shot three muskets in the direction of the shot, and a strange creature with a purple bodysuit and grey skin fell from its perch on a nearby building. It disappeared, only for several more of them to appear by the black coat man holding crossbows and floating in the air.  
  
As the the girls got out their weapons, several more silvery beings surrounded them. They looked like silver jackets that had come to life. They weaved in and out, dancing around the group in a circle.  
  
“I’ll just have to see what makes you tick, Madoka.” The man whispered before a dark vortex engulfed him and vanished.  
  


* * *

  
  
The younger Xehanort led Homura through the castle. As they walked, Homura took in the sights. Though she initially admired the castle’s efficient design, the place felt more eerie the more she walked. The place was beginning to feel… hollow. They passed nobody else on their way to their destination. The sound of their footsteps echoed as the only sound in the place. It was... uncomfortable.  
  
Homura placed these thoughts out of her mind, as the Young Xehanort gestured towards a room. “He should be in there.”  
  
“Thank you.” She said, but he had already departed. Homura ran her hands through her hair and then pushed open the door, leading to another white room. Here, there were several shelves stacked with various books. Xehanort was currently looking through several books at once, but closed them when Homura approached.  
  
“Ah, Homura. I must confess you are back sooner than I had anticipated. I take it your mission was fruitful then? Do we have any information on Madoka?”  
  
“I suppose you could call it that. I searched throughout the World, but could find no trace of her there. After that, I encountered Maleficent as you said.” Homura paused, as she recalled how horribly that encounter had gone, before gritting her teeth and aggressively forcing the memory down. She couldn’t afford to let something like that distract her. “She mentioned encountering Madoka prior, though she and Pete believed they had left her for dead. This was disproved when I questioned Hades, who revealed that she is alive. Though I still do not know her whereabouts.”  
  
“Then it was a success, regardless! Now that we know young Madoka still lives, we can proceed with the difficult task of locating her and saving her. There is a World we must visit, one where we will be able to find the information we seek. Are you ready to depart?”  
  
Homura was about to affirm, when she recalled her experience in the dark portal earlier.  
  
“I’m… not sure. “  
  
“Is something the matter?” Xehanort asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Homura bit her lip. “Are we using the portals?”  
  
“Ah, that would explain it. One must be cautious when traversing the Corridors of Darkness. To those who have yet to master it, the Darkness can eat away at the body and mind. I should have a black coat made for you.”  
  
Homura recalled the cloaks that all the others were wearing. She had thought it was a uniform of sorts.  
  
“What for?”  
  
“They have the property of protecting the wearer from the effects of exposure to the Dark Realm. Though don’t worry, we won’t be traveling using the corridors. They would be ineffective in getting us to where we need to go.” Instead, Xehanort summoned his Keyblade, and pointed it at the the library door at the entrance. A white beam shot out of it and the door glowed.  
  
“After you.”  
  
Homura followed his directions and opened the door, only to find something completely different than that castle on the other side moments before. Now, she was in a sprawling, lively city with strangely designed buildings. Creatures of all shapes and sizes walked the streets, some human and others… not so much. Wares of every kind were being sold here: jewels, potions, clothes and strange fruit. Homura thought she had seen everything, but even she had to gasp in awe. Out of curiosity, she looked up, only to see that, rather than a sky, more of the city was arching over her. In fact, it looked as though the city was built in the inside of a ring.  
  
Xehanort, smiling knowingly, followed behind her. He closed the door behind him, walked in front of Homura and grinned. He then lifted his arms, as if he were a stage performer, and spoke. “Welcome to Sigil, City of Doors.”  
  


* * *

**[ ](https://youtu.be/ixv_jRI6VqY)   
**

* * *

_So yeah, enjoy this world logo I made with about an hour and a half fiddling around in an editor.  
  
Thanks to [The Name Of Love](https://forums.spacebattles.com/members/344191/) for beta-reading and idea sounding!  
  
~Dragonexx_


End file.
